#discord is the best place to get faster replies from me! | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

aithorin · 4 years ago

Text

A Lesson in Possession - All Smite x Reader (18+)

Summary: When you make the mistake of revealing that you find one of the top ten heroes attractive, Smite wastes no time in reminding you that you belong to him.

Warnings: Villain AU, Villain!All Might, Possessive behavior, Dominance, Vaginal fingering, Possessive sex, Unhealthy relationships, Degradation

Archive Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30772664

Very much NSFW!

All Might was ignoring you. Intentionally ignoring you. And you didn’t like it. Not one bit. For the last 20 minutes, you’d tried in vain to get him to finally sit down on the couch with you yet to no avail. He just continued to rustle around in the kitchen, seeming to clang together every goddamn pan in existence while looking for who knows what. At any rate, it was clear your attempts weren’t working at all.

Letting out a huff, you turned away from the kitchen to face the television. Raising the volume to drown out all the fucking noise he was making, the newsreporter babbled on about a battle that had happened earlier in the day. The fight in question was between none other than All Might and a horde of the top heroes. But what else was new?

‘Boooooorrrrring’ You droned out in your head. Picking up the remote, you flicked to the next channel only to be met with the same regurgitated garbage from the last. Sitting up straight, a spark of irritation fired through you as you began cycling through all the channels, going through them faster with each disappointment.

“All Might-” Next

“Earlier today, Symbol of Discord, All Might-” Next

“Top hero Endeavor and All Might faced off-” Next

God, was there nothing else to fucking watch? Huffing in frustration, you hit mute before tossing the remote onto the cushion beside you. Crossing your arms, you settled further into the sofa as a small pout crept onto your face. Glaring at the TV, you gave it a scowl that rivaled All Might’s. However, as you kept your eyes trained on the now silent news report, your glower slowly faded into a wicked grin as an inkling of an idea began to take form. You knew exactly what to do. All Might wouldn’t be ignoring you for much longer.

Sitting up, you swung your legs up onto the couch and schooled your features into the epitome of relaxed and unbothered. Slinging one arm over the back, you kept your gaze glued to the TV and called out, “Your fight from today is all over the news.”

A particularly loud clang was all you got in response. That was okay. It was to be expected. On to phase two.

“They’re saying you destroyed half of Kamino Ward. And with five of the top heroes there too! That’s pretty impressive you managed to make it here without a scratch. I guess even the best have nothing on you.”

This time you got a clang followed by a grunt. Okay, so flattery was a no go. Time to change tactics. But no matter, you had saved the best for last.

“Although…” you began, dragging the word out, “While they may not be a match for you when it comes to power, I do have to say that some of them rival you quite well in the looks department. Personally, I think Hawks comes pretty damn close.”

Bringing a finger up, you tapped it against your lips. Amending your previous statement, you said, “Hmmm, wait. On second thought, I think he might actually be hotter than you. He is pretty attractive, you know.”

At your words, all clanging came to an abrupt halt. This time all that greeted you was deathly silence. Reveling in it, your smirk grew tenfold. Checkmate.

Slow footsteps rumbled across the ground, sending tremors through the floors of your apartment. But you wouldn’t let yourself be intimidated. Keeping your eyes trailed on the screen, you refused to look at him, knowing it would anger him more. With the sole intention of pretending not to notice you had just pissed off the number one villain, you nonchalantly picked at invisible dirt in your nails.

Standing in the doorway that separated the living room from the kitchen, you could feel his glare burning holes into the back of your head, but you held steady to the charade.

“What,” All Might growled, “Did you just say?”

Giving a noncommittal hum and schooling your features, you threw a cursory glance at him over your shoulder before turning back to the TV, feigning disinterest. Once you were out of his line of sight though, you couldn’t help letting the devilish grin return. It was all going according to plan. He was absolutely pissed. You didn’t think you’d ever seen him so angry before. Just a couple of words and his aura had darkened so much it cast a shadow over the whole room. With his eyes blazing and his lips curled back in a snarl, his fists were clenched at his sides, trembling ever so slightly in an attempt to keep his anger in check. At any rate, it was clear your comment had gotten his blood boiling.

“Hmmm, what was that?” you finally replied. Looking at the TV, you continued, “Oh, I was just saying that I think Hawks is way hotter than you. No offense.”

Letting out a snarl, he began to stalk towards you. “You’re playing a dangerous game doll. Are you trying to make me mad?”

“No,” you said, giving a small pout, “I’m trying to get your attention. You’ve been ignoring me the whole time you’ve been here!”

“Insolent girl!” All Might growled, “And you thought insulting me was the way to do it?”

“Well nothing else was working!” you said haughtily, crossing your arms, “Besides, from my view, it worked perfectly. You’re certainly not ignoring me now, which is all I wanted in the first place.” Letting the irritation slide off your back, you gave him a cheeky grin and waggled your eyebrows.

Yet your words seemed to have the opposite effect on All Might as his expression grew impossibly darker. Giving you a derisive smile, he sneered. “Fine,” He said, voice sinister yet full of promise, “Have it your way then.”

The change in the air was palpable. Grin fading from your face, you realized that with nothing more than a few words from him, you’d lost all control over the situation. The knowledge sent a wave of nervousness down your spine. There was no denying it. The tables had turned, and while you may have won the battle, you were most certainly about to lose the war. God, you should have just kept your mouth shut. Why did your impatience always land you in such deep shit? Would it really have been so bad to wait another 15 minutes?

You’d played with fire and now you were about to be burned. From the look of All Might’s heated gaze, it seemed you were in for a world of painful pleasure. He’d give you what you want alright, but the bastard would be sure to reduce you to a writhing, sobbing mess beforehand. Yet despite the fact that your head was screaming at you to get away, your body seemed to have other thoughts. To your horror, you realized that the idea of being so completely at his mercy was actually turning you on. Just thinking about it had you shifting uncomfortably in your seat as a dull throb of need began to build in your abdomen.

In a flash, his looming form hovered over you, encasing you with his shadow, and the glow of his blazing blue eyes burned with a smug self-satisfaction at the sound of your breath hitching. Somehow, he’d gotten ahold of your arms, and they lay trapped in one of his hands held high above your head. His actions had caused your shirt to ride up ever so slightly, a fact which had not escaped All Might’s attention. Taking a moment to rake his eyes over your form, you could feel your body heat under his appreciative gaze, tendrils of want slithering through you.

Leaning over you, All Might trapped you with his body, your chests touching. His nearness created a warmth, and with it your heart began to beat ever so slightly faster. Tongue darting out to nervously lick your lips, you waited to see what he would do. With his free hand, All Might came up to swipe his thumb across your bottom lip, getting rid of the moisture you’d just laid there, before tilting your chin up and somehow getting impossibly closer. It was more than enough to unnerve you, and it was obvious he was doing it on purpose. The damn bastard knew you were helpless to resist when he was that close.

Bending down, he pressed his face toward your ear. “You want attention?” He snarled, his hot breath fanning the shell of your ear and sending a shiver of anticipation down your spine, “I’ll give you attention.”

Pulling back, he made sure his eyes met yours. “I’m gonna fuck you so hard that you forget that bird brained freak even exists. But first, I’m gonna teach you a lesson, doll. Mark my words, you’re gonna regret opening that pretty little mouth of yours.”

And that was all the warning you got. Leaning down, he captured your lips in a bruising kiss, demanding entrance. But the brat in you couldn’t help resisting. You met him full force, refusing to give him what he wanted, goading him. In response, he growled against your lips before biting down on your bottom one, not hard enough to break the skin but hard enough to surprise you. Releasing a tiny yelp at the shock, he seized the moment to push his way through. In an instant, he had his tongue tangled around yours. And there was nothing loving about the embrace. Rough and bruising, it was pure punishment and you were helpless to do anything about it.

As your need for air began to become overwhelming, All Might started to pull away, leaving a trail of saliva connected to your lips, thinning ever so slowly before finally splitting in half to land against your chin. Chest heaving and yearning to feel his lips against yours again, you sought his touch the only way you knew how.

By baiting him.

Sitting up ever so slightly by wiggling one arm out of his embrace, you propped yourself up on it and gave him a roguish grin. “Is that all you got, big guy?” You asked.

At the jab, he let out a growl. “I’m not anywhere close to done with you, girl.”

Leaning down, he grabbed hold of your T-shirt and tore it straight in half in one fell swoop before doing the exact same with your bra. Letting out a gasp, your exposed nipples began to harden in wake of the cold air, and All Might smirked as you rushed to cover yourself.

“Uh Uh Uh” He tutted, waggling his finger at you, “You know better than that.”

Slowly you began to lower your hand, and All Might let out an appreciative hum. “Good girl.” He purred.

Leaning down, he latched onto one of your nipples, swirling his tongue around the tip before taking it between his teeth and giving it an experimental tug. Your body, desperate for the slightest touch now, responded immediately. Letting out a breathy moan, you arched into his touch, silently begging for more as the sensation sent jolts of pleasure dancing across your chest that headed straight to your core. Smirking in satisfaction, All Might chose to ignore your plea. Grabbing onto your hips, he began trailing his lips down to the waistline of your pants, leaving warm wet kisses with his tongue across your belly while his thumbs stroked the sides of your waist. Arriving at the top of your pants, he reached one hand over to flick them open before sliding them over the curve of your ass, taking your panties with them and leaving your glistening pussy fully exposed.

“Look at you. You’re positively drenched, and I’ve barely even touched you. What an eager little slut you are.” He said, dragging one long finger along your slit.

Gasping at his touch, you watched, entranced, as he pulled his finger away, your juices dripping off of it. Bending down, he held it up to your mouth.

“Suck.” He commanded. Looking down at it, you hesitated just a moment too long, and his face twisted into a snarl.

“I’m not gonna ask you twice, girl. When I tell you to suck, you suck. ” He growled, squeezing your jaw open with one large hand wrapped around your cheeks and pushing his index finger into your mouth.

Tentatively you took the length of his finger into your mouth, wrapping your lips around the base of it. As the back of your tongue touched the pad of his fingertip, the warm, slightly salty taste of yourself met it. Swirling your tongue around the digit, you slowly began to bob up and down on it, thoroughly lubricating it with your saliva.

Letting out a satisfied smirk, All Might purred, “Good girl.” Shoving his finger back in as far back into your throat as he could, you gagged trying to catch your breath as he finally removed the digit, bringing your bottom lip down with it.

“That was for earlier.” He sneered, “Don’t disobey me again.”

And then, beginning from your mouth, he traced a path down your chin with his wet finger, going between the valley of your breasts and the soft curve of your belly. As the wet trail he made quickly dried, you shivered as the dampness met the cold air. Arriving at your pussy, he began to prod at your entrance, easily slipping the digit in.

You couldn’t stop from letting out an immediate moan at the stretch. From one finger, he had already managed to make you feel deliciously full. The mind numbing emptiness your body had been begging for him to satiate was finally being remedied.

Beginning to pump, All Might turned his attention toward your clit. As his fingers thrust inside you, his thumb began to rub slow circles over your clit, pulling all sorts of gasps out of you. Working you open, his pace began to quicken and before you knew it he was slipping a second finger in.

Dissolving into putty at his hands, you could feel your climax fast approaching.

Yes!” you moaned, “Just like that.” You were so close. With one more thrust, you’d be gone. You could feel his fingers pulling out, preparing to send you over the edge, when suddenly they were completely gone, leaving you painfully empty.

Choking from the force of being denied so suddenly, your eyes flashed open just in time to see him climbing off of you. Face sweaty and cheeks flushed, you were an absolute mess. Lost in a haze of need, you could barely even comprehend what was happening. All you could see was that damn smirk on his face.

Unbuckling his pants painfully slow, he seemed to revel in your agony. As he hooked his fingers into the waistband of his pants, a distinct clink floated through the air as his loose belt buckle hit the metal of his pant button. And then in one swift motion, he took his pants off, his cock springing free. Painfully hard and red, it seemed to almost pulsate. Following the line of one thick vein, you saw that the tip was already oozing pre-cum.

Licking your lips in anticipation, you waited for All Might to approach you once more, but he remained standing. In fact, he moved farther away from you, making you want to cry.

Stroking himself, he seemed to completely ignore you as he lifted his other hand to rest on his chin, a thoughtful expression came over his face. “You know, I’ve already been quite lenient with you. Maybe it’d be better to just take care of myself.”

At that you wanted to sob. Nothing in the world mattered more to you than having his cock balls deep inside you at the moment. “Please please don’t do that!” you said, wanting nothing more than to pull him close, but he was just out of reach, and by then, you were too out of it to do anything else but stretch a weak hand toward him.

“Ple-please touch me.” You whined, legs rubbing together, desperately trying to regain even the slightest amount of friction.

Letting out a snort, he taunted, “And give me one good reason why I should. You haven’t exactly been on your best behavior today. Need I remind you that this is supposed to be your punishment?”

“I-I know you want to though.” You said, breathless. Raising your head to look at him through hooded eyes, you purred, “It-It’ll be so good.”

Taking a few steps toward you, he looked down into your eyes. Face becoming almost pleasant, he questioned, “You want this? You want my cock?” As you watched him stroke himself, you eagerly nodded. You wanted nothing more.

In an instant, his face turned dark once more as he growled, “Then beg for it.”

At that, a look of confusion spread over your face. “Wh-What?” You questioned.

“You heard me. If you want my cock beg. for. it.” He said.

Under normal circumstances, you would’ve laughed in his face, but, well, being incredibly horny does make a difference. Swallowing your pride, you whispered, “Please. I want your cock. I want you to fuck me.”

And yet, true to the utter asshole that he was, All Might pretended not to hear you. “Hmmm. What was that?” He said, lifting a hand up to cup his ear, “I didn’t hear you.”

“I want your cock!” You shouted, looking up to glare at him, “I want you to fuck me.”

“No need to be so mean kitten,” He said, a mock pout coming over his face, “That’s all I wanted to hear.”

Before you could even register that he’d moved, All Might was back over you again, one last self-satisfied smirk being the only warning you got before he buried his cock in you. Moaning from the sensation, tears sprung at your eyes from how far he was stretching you. God, he was so big, yet you couldn’t even find it in yourself to care because it felt so good.

Fully inside, he gave you the small mercy of allowing but a single moment for you to adjust. Before you knew it, he was pulling out only to thrust back into you again, setting an absolutely brutal pace. Eyes rolling into the back of your head from the force, you briefly registered him attaching onto your neck, sucking hard enough to leave teeth indentations.

Grabbing hold of his neck, you wrapped your legs around his waist to give him better access as breathy groans escaped your lips. Already you could feel the coil inside beginning to wind again.

“You filthy slut. You like this, don’t you? Me using you for the whore you are.” He said, wrapping a hand around your throat and grunting as he bucked into you.

“I’m the only one who’s ever gonna be able to fuck you this good. I’m the only one who can make you feel like this. You got that. You’re mine.” He growled, reaching hand down to flick at your clit, never once slowing down.

Lost in pleasure, you barely even processed his words. That is until he leaned down to snarl in your ear, “Say it.”

“I-I’m yours, All Might. You’re the only one who can fuck me this good.” you groaned.

Coming in close, he caught your lips in a bruising kiss, before thrusting in once more, going so deep you were sent flying off the edge. Gasping, you saw stars in your eyes as white hot pleasure wracked its way down your spine sending tremors throughout your body. As you came, your pussy clenched around him, causing All Might to climax as well. Hot seed coated the insides of your walls as you both fought to recover. As your heavy pants gradually became more controlled, he slowly slid out of you.

With sweat coating his brow and his breathing ragged, All Might looked down at you, blue eyes blazing, “Nobody makes you feel the way that I do. Nobody. And you’d do well to remember that, doll.”

Climbing off of you, he began to make his way down the hall, throwing your pitiful form still sprawled out on the couch one last glance. “The next time you want to try something like what you just pulled, I’d suggest you remember our little lesson today.”

#all might x reader #all smite x reader #all might #all smite #toshinori yagi #toshinori yagi x reader #mha #my hero academia #villain all might #villain au #all might smut #all might x you #yagi toshinori #my hero fanfic #all might imagine #smut

631 notes · View notes

dreamerstreamer · 4 years ago

Note

your requests are open!! headcanons for how you get together with dream? extra poggers if the reader is also a streamer -🥚

note: gn!reader

the way you and clay first met was a bit of a whirlwind, to say the least

it was a few weeks before the next minecraft championships, and the teams had just been announced on twitter

you had been dying to find out who you were going to be playing with—after all, this was your first mcc event, and you were stoked

when you opened twitter, the absolute last thing you expected was to be on a team with niki, tommy, and dream, of all people

you had met tommy before back from when he had randomly responded to a tweet of yours, which made your channel grow exponentially, and you knew that niki was sweet—tommy had told you so

but dream? dream was intimidating

he had millions of subscribers, a beyond-dedicated fanbase, and he had essentially pioneered a whole brand for himself

you were a little scared, to say the least

so when you got a dm out of the blue from dream himself

you basically lost your mind

after collecting yourself, you finally opened the message, only to see that he was offering to practice some parkour with you

doing your best to calm your raging heart, you had agreed, and soon enough, the two of you were friends on discord

the next day, you were startled by another message from him that read, hey, do you want to practice together on call?

with shaky fingers, you typed back a cheerful, sure!

just a few seconds later, you had accepted his call, and dream’s voice echoed through your headphones. “hi, there!”

when you replied with a shy hello, you could hear the smile in his voice when he spoke, and you felt your heart skip a beat. “ready to start?”

the two of you spent the next few hours getting to know each other better, practicing away on the mcc parkour run server as you chatted

you were doing better than you expected, and you couldn’t tell, but dream was impressed

for your first mcc, you seemed way more calm than he thought you would be

the next few weeks flew past in a blur

you had finally met niki, and you were right—she was super nice—and you and dream chatted more and more often

he was... sweeter than you expected. and kind. and funny

despite his intimidating online persona, he was actually a dork at heart, and you found yourself looking forward to talking to him

before you knew it, you were taking a deep breath as the mcc events were being picked, your nerves spiking at an all-time high

you felt like your lungs were about to burst in your chest when dream’s voice suddenly washed over you, again

“don’t sweat it, [y/n]. you and i practiced together for ages. we’re gonna kill it.”

in an instant, your nerves were gone, and mcc passed by in a flash

to your surprise, your team had come in first place, and you were practically jumping for joy in your seat, clapping your hands as you cheered with niki and tommy

unbeknownst to you, dream had your stream open on another tab, smiling fondly at the sight of your bright eyes and wide smile

you were cute—very cute

in the coming months, you and dream stayed in close contact, chatting often and texting practically all the time

soon enough, you became acquainted with his friends and he did the same with yours

you would play games together, spending your evenings laughing your heads off at each other’s silly antics

sometimes, he would even show up uninvited to your streams, coming up with some flimsy excuse about just wanting to check up on you but in reality, he just wanted to hear your voice, but he would never admit it

your chat would go crazy, of course, asking incessant questions about you and dream (with some of being less than kind)

but for the most part, people absolutely ate up the interactions you had with him as did you

the day he told you to start calling him clay when the two of you were alone, you were pretty sure your cheeks were set aflame

your stomach flipped at his soft tone, and you fell asleep with thoughts of him filling your mind

it was a normal day of casually talking to clay when a realization suddenly dawned on you

you had just ended a call with him, casually talking about your day with him before saying goodnight

your heart was practically pounding in your rib cage, and you held a hand over your chest in an effort to calm him

you couldn’t believe you were still intimidated by him after all this time

then, it hit you

your heart wasn’t beating so quickly because you were scared of him

it was beating so fast because you liked him

you blanched at the thought. oh god, i like clay. a lot.

this could only end in disaster... right?

a few weeks later, you blinked at the sound of a ringtone coming from your laptop

slipping on your headphones, you immediately smiled when you read clay’s name, and you accepted the call with an eager smile

but you froze when you saw a new window filled your monitor screen because this was a video call—not a voice call

and sitting in front of you was clay himself

you swallowed, your lips parted in awe as you took in his messy golden locks and his emerald eyes as he flashed a crooked grin at you, lifting his hand up in a small wave. “hi, there.”

with a thick gulp, you waved back, trying to ignore how hot your face felt. “hello.”

he blinked at you for a moment, tilting his head with an inquisitive smile. “i know what you’re thinking—are you surprised?”

you paused for a moment, and nodded a little, lowering your gaze to your lap. “yeah. i didn’t think you’d be this pretty.”

you missed the way his eyes grew wide as he brushed a hand over his burning cheeks, but you heard the way he laughed. “you know, you’re one of the only people who’s seen me like this.”

you blinked at him, a smile tugging at your lips. “i know. i feel special.”

the words were out of his mouth in a flash. “you are special.”

your face was suddenly on fire again, and that was when clay’s gaze focused. “hey, [y/n], um...”

your heart leapt into your throat. “y-yeah?”

he leaned closer to his web cam, and your breath caught in your throat.

“i’d love to take you on a date, sometime.”

your eyes widened to the size of saucers, and you found yourself nodding in an instant, a star struck smile curling your lips. “i’d love that, too.”

while the two of you couldn’t meet in person for a while, you were only more excited to meet him than ever before

for the most part, not a whole lot changed from your schedules

you still called often, talking everyday about anything and everything

but something had clearly shifted—his words were softer, warmer, and he wasn’t afraid to whisper sweet nothings to you

and in typical chaotic clay fashion, your relationship had come out in an accident on stream because of that shift

people immediately pointed out that his tone is just so much nicer when he’s talking to [y/n]! do you think they’re dating? they must be!!

you couldn’t bring yourself to keep up the ruse, so you and clay held a stream about it to break the news

needless to say, you were trending for more than just a few days

while it was jarring at first and you didn’t think you could ever forget how much your social media had blown up in a single night, the internet settled into it faster than you thought

there was some backlash, but it was drowned out by the overwhelming support from your friends and followers

and honestly?

you wouldn’t trade it, or clay, for the world

894 notes · View notes

citrineghost · 3 years ago

Text

Avoiding Scams on Freelancing Sites

Hi there! I almost just got scammed today, and I’m going to take the LITTANY of red flags from this interaction and use it to teach you all about how to avoid scams.

I am not making very much money right now. I just lost one of the accounts I was writing for, so I am not not even making enough to pay my rent. So I am desperately looking for work. And, like many people desperately looking for work, my panicking subconscious is willing to see a red flag and brush it under the rug because

“I’m probably being paranoid.”

So, to all of my lovely artists, writers, editors, and other types of freelancers who are desperately looking for work, I would like to create a comprehensive list of things that you should NOT FUCKING IGNORE while looking for a job. Actually, the list will be formatted as things you should expect from your employer/interviewer and if these things are missing, get the fuck out of there.

1. Reputable Platforms

The first thing you should be expecting is to use reputable platforms. If you’re being asked for a virtual interview, you should expect your interviewer to invite you via Skype, Discord, (Maybe slack if they’re middle-aged), perhaps Whatsapp, or whatever website you’re using to find your job.

DO NOT go for interviews on Telegram. This app has been reported as very commonly being associated with scams. This is where my recent experience took place.

2. Willingness to Verify Legitimacy

The first thing you should do when being in contact with an interviewer or HR is ask them to verify their identity.

This may not be necessary if doing a video call with someone pictured on an official company website, receiving emails or texts from addresses/numbers that are listed on an official company website, or if the job you’re being interviewed for was applied to directly on the company website. In these cases, you are not likely to be scammed, as you’re working with verifiably information.

If you meet someone on Indeed, Fiverr, Upwork, or any other freelancing/job site, keep your contact within the website’s chat system, email system, or whatever. This is how you remain protected under the hiring site’s TOS/Legal whatever. If you get scammed because you took your hiring process elsewhere, they will not help you.

That being said, if you DO take your interview off the site, it should be somewhere reputable and you should ask for your interviewer to verify their identity before doing literally anything else. The best way to get them to verify their identity is to ask them to email or text you from an address or phone number listed clearly on the official company website, by asking them to show you their state ID and checking it for photoshop influence, or by asking to do a video call for the interview and seeing for yourself that you’re being interviewed by someone who is pictured on the official company website as an employee.

3. Clear and Professional Procedures

Any professional working as an interviewer or human resources personnel will have a skillset related to communication and organization. When being interviewed you should expect a number of questions about your skills and how you’re valuable to the company, etc. However, this is easy to fake, as a scammer. What you need to look out for is that they show a clear amount of structure.

If you’re asked for an interview, no real company will demand you be quick about responding. If they’re interested in an interview, a legitimate company is not likely to ask you to do the interview immediately. They will ask you to schedule an interview time with them. They may ask if you have availabilities that day, but they will not just start interviewing you immediately.

After the interview, any professional company will tell you that they will get back to you when they’ve made a decision about your interview. No professional company will tell you to wait for an indefinite amount of time while they talk to HR peers. If a company Does want you to wait, because they intend to make a quick decision, they will give you an expected wait time, as that is the courteous and professional thing to do. They will not expect you to be on-call for this period of time. A time projection is simply to give you an idea of what to expect. For example, “I’ll be in touch within the next 1-3 hours about the results of your interview. Thank you for your time.”

Furthermore, if you are accepted for a job, any professional company will make a clear outline of exactly how they plan to introduce you into company life. They will respect your time and ask you to schedule things with them. For example, “Is there a period of 2-3 hours within the next few days where you would be available for an orientation?”

No professional company will demand you do anything at any particular time. That is not how legitimate professionals treat new employees. You will be asked to schedule things with them. Even when you’re assigned work hours, if the exact hours you’re applying for are not listed in the job description you applied for, they will ask you to fill out some kind of time sheet to outline your availabilities, then schedule you for times within that outline.

4. Doesn’t Show Signs of Money Scamming

There are two major red flags when it comes to money scams. Your interviewer should never ask you what bank you use and your interviewer should never ever tell you they’re going to send you a check, unless they send your paycheck as a check.

One of the more common scams at the moment is run by people pretending to be members of legitimate companies, hiring freelancers for things like proofreading and editing. These remote positions may require home office hardware, right? The interviewer will tell you you’re missing some hardware and software that are required for the job. Then they’ll tell you that they will send a check that you can cash and use to buy the required materials.

This is even sketchier if they email you front and back images of the check and tell you to print it and then deposit it through mobile banking. The way this works is that, if you cash the check successfully, you will then buy the list of software, which is usually completely unrelated to the job you’re being hired for, then they will cancel the check, which hasn’t cleared completely. That leaves you with ~$2k dollars less in your bank and their money right back where it started in theirs. Presumably, the scammers are the ones selling the software. So, that $2k dollars you just spent is also going into their bank account.

Professional companies will never offer to send you checks to buy products. If they have official hardware or software that they want you to use, they will buy it themselves and then send it to you. There is never a reason why a new hire should buy hardware or software out of their own bank, whether they have been given money for it or not.

Furthermore, a legitimate company will never ever pay you before you have signed and sent your contract to them. One of the obvious giveaways of the scam I was almost caught in was that I was sent the contract last night and I asked if I could send it in today, since it was getting late. The interviewer agreed. I signed it in the morning and then asked him if I should send it in a reply to the email I got the original contract from or if there’s another email I need to send it to. He completely ignored my question, asked me how I was doing, and then went into the check-related information so I could buy software.

The issue was bothering me ALL DAY. I knew there was something extremely weird about that, so I asked again a few hours later. His response? “You have nothing to worry about.” ?????? I was aghast. I wasn’t worried at all! I just wanted an answer! If he had simply told me to respond to the email I’d gotten the contract from, I might have fallen for his scam! What a terrible scammer smdh

A Non-Exhaustive List of Other Red Flags

Your interviewer shows a poor grasp on the language

If your interviewer is making frequent grammatical errors that are glaringly obvious to any native speaker, that is a huge red flag. HR reps and interviewers are hired because of their communication skills. It is highly unlikely that someone who makes non-native-like errors is legitimate unless they are actually openly non-native, in which case, it’s not so alarming.

Your interviewer is showing impatience or demanding you at certain times

If your interviewer is telling you to “report back by 8am tomorrow” without any kind of prior agreement that this is an acceptable time for you to meet, that is extremely unprofessional and shows a lack of patience. Scammers want to get to the meat of their scam quickly and will use an air of professional superiority and authority to scare you into moving faster than necessary.

Your interviewer shows a lack of opening and closing statements

Along the lines of the clear processes that I mentioned above anybody who is initiating you in the job you’re taking should show clear opening and closing statements. What I mean by this is: professionals in human resources or management positions will not keep you as a social hostage. If you’ve been discussing how you’ll begin training or somesuch, they will not just leave you hanging. You should have a dedicated time slot where you will have your discussion and, at the end of it, your supervisor should make a closing statement. For example, “It looks like our time is running out for today. What would be a good time to pick this up tomorrow?”

If you feel like you are “on-call” and unable to leave the room because the interviewer or supervisor keeps messaging, has not outlined a time slot for you to talk in, won’t seem to let you go, or shows no indication of stopping, that is a really bad sign. Either the company is legitimate and TERRIBLE at professionalism (a great sign you should run anyway), or this is a scammer intent on getting you to follow their instructions as soon as they can.

Your interviewer ignores time zones or gets them wrong

When I was contacted about doing an interview yesterday, it was 4:30pm. I did the interview and was told I got the job. Immediately after, without asking if I was free, he began listing off instructions and things I was to expect. It wasn’t until 7:30pm that he sent me the contract and asked me to review it, sign it, and send it back that I finally asked if I could do that tomorrow. The interviewer was supposedly on the west coast and knew that I was on the east coast. He agreed by saying “Alright” and then told me to report to him “by 8am your time.”

There are 3 things about this that are weird. The first is that he demanded I show up at 8am to continue where we left off. Any professional would have asked when I’m available the next day to continue. the second is that he said “your time” instead of saying EST, as most professionals in the US would be apt to do. And, lastly, I showed up at 7:50am, ready to continue, because I’m that desperate that I’m willing to be pushed around, and he showed up at 9am on the dot. He had gotten the time wrong. Nobody who works professionally on the west coast is incapable of adding 3 hours to their time. It was a rookie mistake, or a mistake made by someone in a completely different time zone than they say they are.

When asked to verify their identity, your interviewer attempts to reassure you or refuses

When I finally was fed up and knew this must be a scam, I politely asked my interviewer to verify his identity by either showing me his US ID or by contacting me from his email or phone number listed on the official company website. He sent me a photoshopped nametag with a completely different person’s name and photo on it and said it was the company ID of the HR director.

I have never seen a facade fall so pathetically. Why would literally any even remotely legitimate person do such a thing? It was sad, really. He deleted the message in less than a minute - no doubt to keep me from looking at it long enough to see how badly it was photoshopped - and then aggressively reassured me that the company meant me no harm and would pay for everything, etc. Any real professional would have simply sent me an email from the legitimate address, stating that they’re legitimate, and then continued on with the initiation process.

Learn from My Mistakes

I hope some of this was helpful for all of you lovely freelancers trying to find work. I thought I would know a scam when I saw one, and I did have a Bad Feeling about this whole thing, because it did feel too good to be true, but I was desperate enough that my judgement was heavily clouded, and that could happen to anyone.

Don’t ignore red flags - especially these ones. Stick up for yourself. Avoid confirmation bias. I looked things up repeatedly to confirm that the company was legitimate and that it’s normal to do things like mobile deposit a printed check and so on. Every time, I found an explanation that suited me. I even tried to cash the check. The only reason it didn’t work was because there was an error with the name on the check because I recently legally changed my name and PayPal was having some kind of issue updating in some areas of its website. It was after that that I realized this was all crashing down and I needed to reassess it all. Don’t let yourself get that deep into it.

#job hunting #job #interview #hiring #scams #advice #psa #important #upwork #freelancing #writing #writeblr #editing #ghostpost

159 notes · View notes

thefanficmonster · 4 years ago

Text

Strictly Professional

Corpse Husband x Reader (Gender Neutral)

Warnings: Swearing

Genre: HUMOR, Fluff, RPF (Real Person Fic)

Summary: A slip of the tongue leads Corpse to make an unexpected confession which leads to him getting lectured by his best friend. That’s all you need to know, the rest shall unfold before your eyes.

Requested by Anon. Hi dear! Thank you so much for your lovely request! I’m so sorry it’s been so long overdue but here it finally is and I really hope you come across it and read it. If so I hope you enjoy it! Love, Vy ❤

I’ve buried my head under my arms, resting it on my desk as my ears are still violated by the hollering coming from my headset. I don’t know what in me snapped out of nowhere or what caused the slip-up, but what matters is that it happened and now I’m in some hot water. I’m practically the soup everyone in this Discord call at the moment will be eating for dinner tonight, getting a real kick at my expense - some even having the audacity to be mad at me over it - ahem, Rae, ahem - but bottom line: I won’t live this down easily.

“Hey everyone! What did I miss?“ Sykkuno, who was running late and missed this entire debacle makes an appearance. If it were any other occasion, I’d be overjoyed to hear he’s finally joining us, but his question of what he had missed renders me only able to cringe and wait for my friends’ next move.

“Sykkuno!“ Rae exclaims ecstatically, “Oh, strap in, imma tell you what you missed...“

“No, you won’t tell him, Rae.“ Toast cuts her off, sounding uncharacteristically serious, especially when taken into account how hard he was laughing just a moment ago, “This is Corpse’s tale to tell, don’t spare him the shame of telling it one more time.“

And just when I thought this fucker would prove himself to be a true friend...

“Oof, this sounds serious...“ Sykkuno says to fill the silence I purposely let linger just so I don’t give these bullies the satisfaction of hearing my embarrassment all over again even though they inevitably will.

“It is...“ I sigh with a heavy heart, hiding my face in the palm of my hand, “It’s really bad and embarrassing and...I’d rather not retell it at all let alone for a second time, but here it goes...“ I inhale as much air as I can as a method of gaining confidence before I start talking, “So you know MGK and I made a song. Yeah well, we’re gonna be making a music video for it and I asked Rae to be in it. Thing is, I wanted to ask Y/N first. Buckle up, this is where it starts going downhill: ok so I went over to their place so we could just chit chat an marathon a few movies like we usually do over the weekends but I also wanted to bring up the whole ‘hey, wanna be in my music video’ thing but didn’t know how. Mind you, we were drinking beers this whole time, might’ve had a few too many actually. Ok, we definitely had a few too many, but back on track: as I was blabbering and stumbling over my words, nervous as all hell and unable to string the simple question inside my head, all Y/N did was tilt their head and smile at me. You know, the odd thing is it was a genuine smile, not a drunken grin like you’d expect from someone on their fourth beer bottle. And then, out of the blue, they had the audacity to hit me with: ‘You’re so cute’ and I just sat there frozen for a few seconds. I mean, my reaction was on point - who wouldn’t react like that if their crush told them they found them cute. Anyway - I was like ‘what?’ and then, out of an even bluer blue, they freaking kissed me. I nearly had a heart attack damn it!“

“And he never asked them to be in the DAYWALKER music video!“ Rae clearly couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“I didn’t get the time! I was out of there in the blink of an eye!“ I bark, feeling my face heating up with embarrassment and regret. God, I should never ask how stupid I can get because I keep surprising myself in the end with just how far my stupidity goes. It’s fucking insane.

“Oh God, poor Y/N.“ Sykkuno sighs, sounding only a tiny bit as though he’s about to laugh. I appreciate his self-control honestly, the rest of these fuckers were dying laughing as though our friends and my crush kissing me and me responding like I had an allergic reaction was the best joke to ever be told.

“Poor Y/N?“ I snap a little, “What about me?“

“Yeah, poor Y/N!“ Rae backs Sykkuno up, “Poor Y/N and poor me for the missed opportunity to me in a music video for a song of one of my best friends with another one of my best friends. Corpse, you better fix this!!“

“How?!“ I’m aware I sound desperate but I seriously wanna fix it just have no idea how to go about it. I mean, if this looney group of nine people over here don’t come up with a plan no one will so not all hope for me is dead just yet. Even if we all had only one braincell we’d still be able to figure it out - I mean, ten braincells ain’t as bad as it sounds. Truth be told, Y/N’s the real brain of the group and they’d most definitely be able to help me - so fuck the irony.

“Call them.“ Sykkuno suggests so casually as though it’s a no-brainer. I’d go as far as to say his nonchalance almost made me laugh. Has he forgotten who he’s talking to?

“No way.“ I turn that down real quick, unable to even imagine the course of that phone call without cringing.

“No, Sykkuno’s right, call them right here right now. Ask them to star in the music video and then swerve the conversation to that kiss.“ Charlie’s suddenly decided to join the torturing being preformed upon me over here.

“What will I even say? I have no idea what to tell them!“ I complain, aware that I sound like a tantrum-throwing toddler but it’s really not my fault.

“Corpse. Corpse dear, listen to me, follow each word I say really carefully, ok?“ Rae asks, her voice now pitched as though she’s addressing an actual child. Yeah, that’s her well-known way of mocking me. “How about you say the actual fucking words. You know: ‘Hey Y/N, MGK and I are making a music video for DAYWALKER, wanna be in it?’“

I sigh, clearly defeated.

I pull out my phone, muttering to the crowd I’m about to speak in front of to be quiet as I put the ringing call on speaker, sweating like a pig the whole time. The room has risen in temperature and this hoodie has thickened, providing more warmth that’s more suffocating than comforting when it’s a hundred degrees outside. Or when I’m about to talk to my crush after THAT incident.

“Hello?“ Y/N’s voice on the other side rips me from my thoughts’ grasp, reminding me I’m on a mission.

“Hey Y/N, what’s up?“ I reply a little too quickly. Not giving them the time to reply with anything, I continue: “Hey Y/N, MGK and I are making a music video for DAYWALKER, wanna be in it?“

DAMN IT WHY DID YOU HAVE TO SAY IT WORD FOR WORD?!?!

“Oh....“ They sound confused - and rightfully so - but then regain their composure finally, “I-I’d love to. Thanks for the opportunity, Corpse. I’m so happy you’ve made it so far. I’d be honored to be in the music video.“

Ok, that’s partial relief. Now - time for the second phase of this plan

“Uh....“ and there goes my whole vocabulary out the window, “You’re welcome.“

“Cool...cool...“ they mutter awkwardly, clearly looking for a way to end the call, “Um, by the way...this is strictly professional, right?“

No! No it’s not! Of course it isn’t! I’ve been head over heels for you for a year now, damn it!

“Of course, o-of course it is. No worries.“ I reply, once again, a little too quickly. Faster than I could’ve prevented it.

“Ok cool...well, text me the details....“ They once again trail off, hoping I’ll catch the hint.

And so I succumb.

“Will do.“ I sigh, “See ya.“

“See ya.“ They reply and hang up.

I’m left there staring at my phone screen with utter self-disappointment and frustration that’s so intense I cannot even express it in any way.

The whole lobby is at a loss of words too - all nine of them astonished by my stupidity. Fortunately though, Charlie is quick to pull himself together and speak up because God forbid Charlie ever falls speechless, then we’d be SERIOUSLY in danger.

“Corpse. You. Are. The. Biggest. Fucking. Idiot.“

@maat-the-prescriptive @simonsbluee @save-the-sky @itsminniekat @hacker-ghost @bi-andready-tocry @imtiredaffff @jazzkaurtheglorious @hereforbeebo @fandomgirl17 @chrysanthykios @maehemscorpyus @loraleiix @letsloveimagines @annshit @i-cant-choose-a-username-help @enigmaticmaze @divine-artemis @waterlilypat @idontknowwhatthisisfam @evi-ka @classyandfabulous00 @redperson58 @lilysdaydreams @solowheein @mythicalamphitrite @axen-gers @luckygirl144 @nj01 @buddyemily @the-albino-lioness @stardream14 @gdhdkfnn @nomadicgypsyy @preciousskye @fluffysuicideunicornsworld @o-kaelin @manacharlotte @awkward-youtube-trash @lolalee24 @bonky-beerns @meme-lord-and-savior-sebastian @strawbrinkofdeath @teenloves @tams0527 @browneyespinkhair @starstruckllamapuppy @daisychains012 @y0ulooked @tinytacosuitcaseflap @supernatural-is-my-only-life @jula-pauline @melodykitty @just-that-bi-girl @crazybutconfidentaf @lowellshade @alphakees @bellero @weallneednamjesus @starryhanji @boiled-onionrings @husherstan @fockingwhore @melaningoddessthings @prettypastelpetals @haleypearce @godwhyamiawkward @y-napotat @daisychainyoonmin @little-miss-rebel3 @free-wheelin-bi-sexual @redmoon261 @darkacademic2 @wiseflamingoqueen @into-the-end @namikhai-i @nastiablr @thelittleplantlover @mirktuan @dont-hyuck @jjk-bunny @vintagegothlover @easygoingtheatre @itsrandombooklover @miiaivi @emmybaybee @befourgolden @jjk-is-my-shit @eternalteaaars @spacebadgerx @princesslunalight @acequinn14 @samm48 @misselsbells06 @simp-lykawa @fo-love @marishimomura-blog @therealglenncoco @cinnamonbun332 @killtherandomness @sanshinexxxsan @fee-btheweeb @press-lay @cathleenpotgieter16 @jazzydoesstuff @moonlxghtbay @forestrain2000 @hyunjinhugs @blood-of-fandoms @lovellylies @ukiyolixx @simpforhpcharacters @chrisdylan17 @parkerjisung @pedernille @theodonyous @wineandionysus @malfoystilinskii05 @morbid-x @coryisagee @jessewa26 @scoobydooluver97 @mindintheskies365 @raeanneinwonderland @indecisive-empanada @gluttonypalace @loriane2503 @btsiguess-kpop @khaoticbunny @lucidlycactus @smiithys @rottenroyalebooks @kpopgirlbtssvt @fangirl-tc27 @fr0z3n-1 @notmesimpingfortechno @shotarosleftpinky @kunoi-chan @idk-whats-wrong-with-me @yikeroonie @goldenstarofthunderclan @poetry-and-tea @ama-do-writing-stuff @wishbonewolf @emeraldxhope @t0xick1tty @kusuinko @speakyourselfloveyourself @sophia902103 @lo-manburg @classsykittykat @dmgama @depressedpuppythatneedscoffee @btsiguess-kpop @akaashi-baby @gun-jong-simp @geschichtenfee @yerapotato-wp @browneyedgirl365 @thysagclub @sparklycloudnight @helloatomicshadow @queentorresstuff @vtte @val-gal @lucy-bunny17 @aaliyahh0 @katluckybear @boyleanti @straybids @franchesca-791 @cosmicstorm19 @averyisbackinthetrashcan @aomi-nabi @xlanawriter @allensimpsforcorpse @sunnyrae-cessh @ladykxxx08 @meowiemari

258 notes · View notes

edendaphne · 4 years ago

Text

“Discordant Sonata” Chapter 20

>>Click here to read on Ao3<<

>>Click here to read on Wattpad<<

–––––

CHAPTER 20: PRESTISSIMO

Music glossary:

Prestissimo - "Extremely quickly”; to be played as fast as possible

* Fun tidbit: The name “Gaspard” means "bringer of treasure" *

–––––

(Mood Music: “Dead Things” - Philip Glass)

Adrien cursed into his gag, feebly squirming on the back seat of the car he’d been dragged into. The windows were heavily tinted, so there was no chance that anyone would be able to see him. Not that that mattered right now anyway, as he couldn’t even sit up at the moment. In fact, he couldn’t feel any of his appendages due to whatever drug his bodyguard (or... whoever he was) had injected into him.

One thing was certain: since neither of these men was the real Gaspard, they must be akumas, and his father had used their likeness to trick him.

Damn it. Why had he left his guard down back there? He should’ve known not to trust anyone. And now thanks to his idiocy, Marinette had gotten dragged into this giant mess, and he had no idea where “Fake-Gaspard #2” had taken her. He’d never forgive himself if anything happened to her. He seethed silently, consumed by fear and anger, both simultaneously raging for control.

He could feel Plagg behind him trying to fiddle with the zip ties that bound his arms together; but it wasn’t as simple as merely unlocking a safe or a door. Having Plagg with him was his only ace in the hole, so he had to remain hidden. Adrien had to plan his escape carefully for when the effects of the drug had worn off enough. Even if Plagg wasn’t able to remove the ties, he could still unlock the car door, so Adrien could roll out and... hopefully not be crushed to death by traffic. He let out a muffled grumble.

Okay... maybe that wasn’t the best idea.

He had to do something soon though; there wasn’t much time left before they arrived back at the Agreste mansion, and the only feeling he’d regained was in his hands and feet. He supposed he should consider himself lucky. If the dosage had been any higher, it could’ve interfered with his lungs, or worse.

Not that Father would care, he huffed impassively. If anything, it would get him out of the picture permanently, and he’d no longer be an inconvenience to Hawkmoth’s schemes.

Adrien’s thoughts drifted back to Marinette; worry and anxiety about what had happened to his beloved roommate clouded his mind, interfering with his concentration. He replayed her scuffle with the bodyguards over and over in his head, the overwhelming feelings of guilt and shame causing his entire being to ache in agony and self-loathing. This was all his fault. He was pathetic. Degraded from superhero to hostage with no one but himself to blame.

If Gabriel locked him away, would he ever find out what happened to her? Memories of being locked in a small, almost completely barren room for days at a time as punishment for misbehavior flashed in his mind, causing his insides to churn and his hands to get clammy. He fought the panic that threatened to boil over within him and firmly shoved the memories away. He needed his wits about him at the moment, and getting sucked into a spiral of panic would prevent him from being able to think logically.

His thoughts were interrupted as the car screeched to a halt, and had his Not-Bodyguards not partially strapped him into the lap seatbelts, he would’ve been thrown onto the floor from the momentum. He managed to turn his head and shake it slightly to try to get the hair out of his eyes, letting out a small grunt of puzzlement. What was happening??

His confusion didn’t last long.

An enormous force hurtled down from the sky onto the hood of the car, squashing it like an empty aluminum can, crushing the engine and rendering it useless. Once the dust and debris settled, Adrien peeked as high as he could, trying to catch a glimpse of what had landed on the car. Despite his meager view from the back seat, coupled with his blurry eyesight (as he’d lost his eyeglasses sometime during the scuffle), he could still make out the unmistakable red boots and black leggings that stood on top of the broken metal.

A million questions swirled around in his head in a jumbled tornado of confusion and elation. He tried calling out her name, having completely forgotten that he couldn’t, and he doubled his efforts trying to squirm out of his bindings so he could get her attention.

His endeavors were cut short though. Despite his impaired vision, he saw the distinct glowing masks form in front of the men’s faces.

I knew it!! he thought, glaring at them with distaste.

They rushed out of the car without a word, and he couldn’t help but utterly loathe the thought of Ladybug fighting both of them by herself, despite her partner being mere feet away, albeit totally useless.

God, I hate being a damsel in distress, he frowned. I hope she’s gonna be okay.

In a vicious display of skill that shocked onlookers, barely a minute later Ladybug had the two men strung up with her yo-yo from a street light. They hung several feet above the ground, expressions slightly miffed but otherwise still rather blank, which, for an akuma, was unusual to say the least.

“Ugh, not in here either,” Ladybug remarked crossly, discarding a broken watch onto the floor, joining the plethora of other torn items and belongings scattered all around them. “Where the hell is it?!” she grumbled after tearing a shoe in half and still not seeing any blackened butterflies.

She frowned, twisting her mouth in annoyance. If I keep going like this, they’ll end flashing all of Paris, she thought. Best to turn them over to the authorities and continue this search at the police station. She needed to check on Adrien anyway.

Right on cue, the police arrived and secured the area. After making sure the police had a handle on the situation, Ladybug rushed to the busted car to retrieve Adrien.

She jerked the car door open––or rather, tried to– accidentally yanking the entire door handle off and warping the metal of the door itself. She cursed in irritation, deciding to bypass the door altogether, and leaped onto the top of the car. With a strained heave, she peeled off the entire roof like a can opener, all the while muttering a colorful string of expletives Adrien had never heard his mild-mannered, even-tempered partner say before.

She dropped down next to him onto the back seat, releasing the seatbelts and assisting Adrien into a seated position. She reached up to touch his face, apologizing sheepishly before carefully peeling off the tape that covered his mouth.

Despite the gag being gone, Adrien remained speechless, staring at Ladybug with an intensity she’d never seen coming from him before. With a small, flustered stutter, she summoned a Lucky Charm. A pair of small, polka-dotted scissors landed onto the palm of her hand. She made quick work of his bindings and briefly inspected the red marks on his skin to make sure he was unharmed.

Adrien threw his arms around her, bringing her into a bone crushing hug, his entire body shaking like a leaf.

“Oh, Adrien,” she whispered, her voice still a bit raspy, and squeezed back firmly. “I’m so glad I found you. I was so scared.”

He didn’t reply, as he was near-hyperventilating, but his grip around her shoulders tightened and he buried his head into her neck, seeking comfort.

A few moments later, Ladybug gently lifted Adrien out of the car, careful not to touch the jagged metal edges. She hopped down to the ground and gingerly sat him on a nearby bench. He wobbled unsteadily, but managed to stay upright as she examined him.

“How are you feeling? Can you tell me what happened?” she asked, seemingly snapping him out of a haze.

Without a word, his head whipped up and his eyes developed a determined glint. He shot up to his feet– or, at least, he attempted to– barely managing to take a single wobbly step before crumpling onto the ground.

“Adrien!!” Ladybug called out as she halfway caught him. “Are you injured?! What’s happened to your legs?”

“Paralyzing drug,” Adrien slurred. “I’ll be fine,” he continued as he clumsily broke away from her hold, successfully taking a couple of shaky steps forward.

Ladybug exclaimed, horrified, “They drugged you?! What did they want?” She stepped in front of him, placing her hands gently on his chest, halting his attempt to flee. “Where are you going?? You’re in no condition to be running around right now, we need to take you to a hospital!”

Adrien shook his head, his tone becoming increasingly desperate, his pace becoming faster and more frantic as he stumbled ahead. “No no, please, I need to go look for her!”

“What’s wrong?” Ladybug asked, perplexed. “Look for who?” she said as she rushed beside him.

“I have to go back!” he pleaded. “I have to make sure she’s okay! She could be in danger, I need to find her!”

At this point, they’d reached a grassy portion of an adjacent park, and the uneven ground caused him to trip over himself. He cried out as he fell on top of Ladybug, who had surged forward to catch him.

“Please…” he looked down at her, barely able to hold himself up with his arms in their weakened state. “I have to find Marinette. She got hurt trying to save me,” he uttered quietly, his voice quivering and eyes glossy. “If anything happened to her, I don’t think I could–” his voice cracked, unable to continue. He inhaled slowly, then uttered with a trembling voice, “Please, I need to go back. She’s really important to me, I can’t go anywhere else until I know she’s alright.”

Ladybug’s face softened, touched by his concern. “She’s fine!” she blurted out. “Marinette’s fine!”

Adrien gave her a puzzled look. “What?? But how do you know?”

She attempted to give him a reassuring smile, trying her hardest to avoid looking like a demented clown. Think, you knucklehead, think!! Ladybug screamed inwardly in a panic.

“Uhh, she’s the one who contacted me!” she lied, then lowered her voice, as if she were letting him in on some forbidden knowledge. “She’s been secretly helping me and Chat Noir, so I gave her a way to contact me privately in case of emergency. But of course, this has to remain a secret; so please don’t tell anyone.” She helped him to a sitting position on the ground and added, “Can I trust you with this?”

Adrien’s face and posture relaxed, his eyebrows upturned with both amazement and affection. “Always,” he breathed out softly. “You can count on me, always,” he murmured, a kind smile etched on his handsome face as he reached for her hand and squeezed.

Ladybug smiled fondly in return, remembering why it had been so easy to fall in love with him several years ago. He was truly a selfless and sweet person at heart.

He lifted his hand up to her face, rubbing his thumb across a cut on her lower lip and wiping away a spot of blood which, unbeknownst to him, she’d gotten as Marinette. Her breath hitched, face suddenly feeling rather warm.

“It seems like we always meet under less than ideal circumstances,” Adrien chuckled softly. “Fate has a cruel sense of humor sometimes. I’m sorry.”

Ladybug’s stomach tingled, a sense of familiarity descending on her yet again. She must have been staring because Adrien swiftly withdrew his hand with a quick apology, muttering sheepishly how he’d never been very good at recognizing the need for personal space.

Not wanting to make him feel uncomfortable, Ladybug forced herself to pretend to have a functioning brain and smiled politely, helping him to stand and letting him use her as a support. “It’s okay, no worries!” she added amiably. “Would you let me take you back to the school? My yo-yo’s better than a taxi, or so I hear.”

He grinned widely, then nodded. “Yeah. I’d appreciate it.”

Ladybug picked him up, acutely aware that crowds were beginning to gather around the area. As she was about to take off with Adrien, she heard one of the cops call out her name.

“What is it, Officer Raincomprix? Do you have the situation under control? I’m taking Adrien back to the school to get him checked out by a medical professional. You can get a statement from him there, away from the public and from–” she added, an annoyed crinkle forming on her forehead “–from all the reporters. Be on the lookout for any possible akuma.”

Officer Roger Raincomprix’s face was one of pure bewilderment. “Uh– well, ma’am, something’s happened. I’m not sure how to explain. You’d better come take a look for yourself.”

Ladybug and Adrien exchanged puzzled glances, then she nodded as she and Adrien made their way to where she’d detained the kidnappers.

Upon arriving back at the scene of the battle, Ladybug gasped, almost dropping Adrien in shock, with a look on her face like she’d just witnessed an alien invasion.

“WHERE ARE THEY?!” she shrieked. “How did they escape?!?”

“We’re not sure,” Officer Roger stated. “Somebody caught it on camera, maybe you can get some clues from the video.” He called over one of the cameramen from a local news crew. “Rewind it, please,” he instructed him.

Ladybug and Adrien stared at the tiny screen in awe. The two men had been released from the lamppost and were being walked towards the police car in handcuffs. Once they’d almost reached the vehicle, they halted mid-step, then fell to the ground, faces twisting in agony, and they let out a bloodcurdling wail, like their insides were being ripped apart. A cloud of dark, indigo smoke engulfed them, obscuring them completely; and when it cleared, there was nothing.

Ladybug gaped in total confusion. “So they just… disappeared??” she cried. “Vanished without a trace??”

The officer shook his head. “Not entirely. These were left behind,” he added, presenting two small, white feathers.

Ladybug accepted them, even more confused than before. “And you’re absolutely certain you saw no akumas leave their bodies?”

Roger nodded. “Positive. There was nothing else. We’re searching the area for clues; we’ll let you know if we find anything.”

Ladybug exhaled sharply, feeling like she’d been thrown into a freezing lake, the tiny hairs at the back of her neck standing on end. What in the world was happening??

(Mood Music: Ballet from “Orpheus and Eurydice" - Christoph Gluck)

By the time Ladybug had gotten Adrien situated at the school nurse’s, the effects of whatever neuromuscular drug he’d been injected with had waned somewhat, and he’d regained most of the feeling and mobility in his limbs. Since he waved off the need to actually lie down in one of the beds, she helped him sink into a small sofa, adjusting the pillows, fussing over him, asking if he needed a blanket or something to drink. All the while, he kept trying to reassure her that he was fine (although his face did look a bit flushed during this exchange, which didn’t ease her apprehensions).

As the nurse examined his vitals and gave him a quick check-up, Ladybug’s thoughts slowly shifted from doting concern to one of regret and guilt. This was all her fault. She should have listened to Tikki and transformed instead of rushing in headfirst without knowing the full situation.

Her earrings rang out their second beep, reminding her that her time was beginning to run short. She knew she needed to part ways, but a pressing question rooted her to the spot. She couldn’t leave just yet. Not until she knew.

Adrien must’ve sensed her discomfort; as soon as the nurse excused herself to fill out a health report and speak to the police, he touched her arm and asked quietly, “Is everything okay?” He motioned for her to sit next to him, patting the cushion with a friendly gesture.

She complied, trying to appear as calm as possible as she took a seat. “Well, it’s about… earlier,” she began hesitantly, then lowered her head to whisper, “Do you think this had anything to do with those photos of us from a few months back, when we went to the movies together? Maybe the pictures got leaked after all, and the wrong people got ahold of them. I can’t help but feel like that’s why you were targeted.”

Adrien’s eyes popped wide open as he jerked his head up. “Oh, no!! No, it wasn’t!” Adrien replied, arms waving in emphatic denial. He tried to calm his voice again as he continued to insist, “Believe me, it’s not connected to that at all!”

“What?? B-but how are you sure? You can be honest with me; you don’t have to downplay it for my sake,” she insisted. “I accept all responsibility for everything that happened that evening. I should’ve known it was too dangerous and that it would put you at risk. I just want to fix things and make sure what happened today won’t ever happen again.”

“The timing was just a coincidence, I promise,” Adrien assured her, reaching forward and giving her shoulder a squeeze. “This has nothing to do with you... and everything to do with my father,” he added darkly.

Ladybug’s jaw dropped as a realization dawned on her. “Oh no, your father… he’s going to be so upset!! The police have probably already notified him, he must be worried sick!” Ladybug groaned in dismay, her head dropping into her hands, entirely missing the way Adrien’s eyes rolled sardonically. “Would it help if I escorted you to your home myself? Just to make absolutely sure that you arrive home safely? It’s no trouble, really! I’d just need to go recharge real quick and–”

Adrien looked like he’d just been set on fire. “NO!!!’ he cut her off, unable to keep the terror out of his voice. “Please, don’t!!”

Ladybug recoiled back like she’d been slapped in the face, utterly bewildered at his response. Adrien’s hands began to tremble, and he gripped the fabric of his pants to try to keep them still.

“Uhh, what I meant to say was, ‘no thank you, that won’t be necessary.’ M-my Father is, uhh... very particular. Fastidious, really. Someone will drive me back.” He grimaced as if his words tasted bitter, then he exhaled, seeming to compose himself. “I appreciate the offer, it’s very kind of you. But there’s really no need.”

“I… b-but…” she stammered, twiddling with the hem of her skirt, unconvinced. “Are you absolutely, positively sure you’ll be alright?”

Adrien nodded. “I’ll be fine. Trust me.”

Ladybug let out a deep sigh. “Well… alright. Sorry I kept pushing, it’s just…” She bit her lip, trying not to think about the chillingly blank stares of the impostor bodyguards. “It’s just that those men were no ordinary akumas. Actually, I don’t even know if they were ever really human in the first place. Or akumas. Something is very wrong here. I don’t like it.”

She felt Adrien shuffle nervously beside her, and her posture straightened like she’d been smacked with a rod, her head whipping up to meet Adrien’s concerned eyes again.

“Oh goodness, I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t be blabbing all this stuff to you, especially after what you’ve just been through. You’re safe now and I’ll make sure it stays that way, alright? I swear it! So, please try not to worry about it. I’ll discuss this incident with Chat Noir and see if he knows anything about this weird phenomenon, okay? We’ll protect you.” She grinned and took his hands into hers, giving it a gentle squeeze.

An odd look crossed his face, but it shifted into a cordial smile before she could think much of it. “Right. Thanks, Ladybug. I’m sorry you had to get dragged into this.”

Ladybug sputtered, “Not at all! Please don’t be sorry! It’s my job! I was happy to do so! W-well, I mean– not happy you almost got– I mean, obviously not that, but happy that you... that I—“ she stopped her ramblings with a loud, embarrassed facepalm. “Ow. Anyway, you know what I mean,” she finished with a self-deprecating grin.

Adrien was about to reply when the door to the infirmary swung open, crashing into the adjacent wall with a loud bang.

“ADRIEN!!! BRO, ARE YOU OKAY??!” a despondent-sounding Nino rushed to his side, throwing his arms around him without even noticing Ladybug’s presence, a concerned Alya following closely behind.

Adrien hugged him back, touched at his concern. “Nino!! Boy, am I glad to see you! I’m fine, really!”

“You’re not hurt?? You’re really okay?!”

“Of course! I’m fine now, all thanks to Ladybug and Mar— wait…” His head whipped around the room, squinting his eyes as he searched (the action reminding Ladybug that Adrien’s glasses were still missing). “Where’s Marinette? She’s not with you guys?”

Ladybug let out an odd squeak, then tried covering it up with a cough.

Alya shook her head. “I tried calling her, but there’s been no answer. But someone pulled the fire alarm and called the cops, so maybe that was her? I was able to squeeze some info out of one of the officers. He said a young woman called and claimed she saw Adrien Agreste get taken away in a vehicle against his will. He mentioned that she sounded out of breath, almost like she was running or chasing after them. If that doesn’t sound like Marinette, then I don’t know what does.”

Adrien bit the side of his cheek, brows upturned in concern. “She saw us and tried fighting the assailants. She could be injured, I have to go find her,” he said as he stood up, still wobbly but able to do it unassisted.

“NO!!” Ladybug yelped, leaping off the sofa like it was made of hot coals, and they all looked up at her. “I mean, you shouldn’t push yourself. D-don’t worry, I’m sure she’s on her way! You should stay here so she knows where to find you! No sense in having you both running around and potentially missing each other, right?”

Adrien crossed his arms, not quite convinced, but deciding to follow her instructions. “Well… I-I guess. We should try her cell phone again.”

Ladybug continued, words dribbling out like a broken faucet, “Anyhoo, my earrings are about to beep again, so I’d better get going! But you all know how to get a hold of me if anything happens, right guys? Right?? Right... Anyway, bug out!!”

And with that, Ladybug scampered away like a white rabbit late for a tea party.

A few minutes later (the entirety of which Adrien spent answering Nino and Alya’s worried queries as well as filling out a police report) a rather rumpled-looking Marinette quietly entered the room, not wanting to interrupt.

She didn’t stay undetected for long, however. Upon seeing her, Adrien’s features morphed from surprise into joy, followed by relief, then concern. He’d never seen her look quite so… tired .

He must’ve uttered her name out loud because she approached them sheepishly. “Umm… hi. S-sorry, it took me a little while to walk back to the school and my phone ran out of battery on the way. Are you oka––”

Adrien sprung off his seat and shuffled towards her, halfway dragging his still-sluggish legs. He threw his arms around her, clutching her as tight as he could, as if she might disappear again at any second.

“Marinette, thank God,” he cooed, gently cradling the back of her head. “I don’t know how to thank you. If it hadn’t been for you, I would’ve been–”

“You would’ve done the same for me,” she said as she embraced him with matching fervor. “I’m just glad you’re okay now.”

They felt a large thwump as someone wrapped their arms around them, followed by another set of arms joining the pile.

“This most definitely calls for a group hug,” Nino said, squeezing hard.

“Especially after what Adrien told us happened,” Alya added. “Girl, you are so brave! I’m so proud of you!! Ladybug and Chat Noir better watch out or you’ll be stealing their jobs soon!” Adrien heard Marinette let out an amused snort as he and Nino chimed in in agreement.

Now that the danger had passed and the adrenaline had subsided, a moment of calm was exactly what they needed.

As the group pulled apart and he was able to get a better look at her, it was then that Adrien noticed how truly beaten up Marinette appeared, physically. Her hair was out of place, her clothes torn in a few spots, her usual hair accessory was missing, and she was covered in grime, cuts, and bruises.

“Oh, Mari…” he whispered sadly as he slowly turned her head by the chin, gently thumbing a large cut on her lips and ghosting the tips of his fingers over a darkening black eye, moving her hair out of the way.

Marinette then realized that, in the midst of all the commotion, Ladybug had forgotten to use her Miraculous Cure.

Damn it! Screwed up yet another thing today.

She wondered if she could summon another Lucky Charm later today and try to fix things then . She’d never tried using a Lucky Charm outside of battle once the danger had already passed. Would it even work?

Marinette winced. “That bad, eh? Do I have to wear a paper bag over my head for a few days to avoid frightening the children of Paris?” she joked. She instinctively stuck out her tongue to search for the cut on her lip, then flinched when the wetness of her saliva made it sting.

Adrien frowned. “Nonsense. Here,” he said, leading her by the hand back to the sofa. After she sat down, he began gathering some of the first aid materials that the nurse had left on the countertop, then rummaged through the drawers and cupboards for more.

Marinette let out a flustered squeak as he brought the supplies over and pulled up a chair, sitting across from her.

“Oh! Don’t worry about it, it’s totally not necessary,” she said, holding her hands up. “I can take care of it later, it’s no big deal, you should really get some rest–”

Adrien leaned forward in his seat, reaching for her hand. “Please. Let me do this.” he murmured, insistent. “It’s the least I can do.”

Marinette could feel her face getting flushed from all the attention, but didn’t want to argue with him. He was clearly blaming himself for what had happened, and maybe this would be a way to help him feel better, even though it wasn’t his fault whatsoever. She shyly tucked some hair behind her ear, then nodded in consent.

As Adrien treated Marinette’s wounds, they overheard Principal Damocles and Madame Bustier conversing as they walked down the hallway outside of the nurse’s office.

“—And now there isn’t even anyone left behind for Monsieur Agreste to press charges, since the police claim that the perpetrators disappeared into thin air!” Mr. Damocles lamented as he paused in front of the slightly ajar infirmary door. “It’s not like he can sue Ladybug or the authorities for their negligence in capturing the culprits. Or, come to think of it, maybe he can! He is friends with the mayor, after all,” he pondered, continuing his musings. “Regardless, the blame will surely fall upon us!”

“Perhaps this isn’t the time to worry about that, Principal Damocles,” Mme Bustier spoke in a more hushed tone. “Surely M. Agreste must be feeling absolutely distraught after what nearly happened to his son. He’s such a caring and devoted father, always worrying about Adrien’s well-being, especially since his wife’s disappearance. His son is all he has left. We should try to be more considerate.”

“Hmm, yes, I suppose you are correct. Perhaps if we send him a basket of fruit to show our condolences about this incident, he’ll let the whole thing slide and we can avoid a lawsuit.”

“Sir…” Caline Bustier let out a troubled sigh as the two continued down the hallway.

The room was quiet again and Marinette had to work really hard to suppress an irritated groan, as her acting skills were put to the ultimate test of avoiding outwardly cringing at her principal’s misdirected priorities.

Her attention turned back towards Adrien, and at this point she realized that his actions had halted. His arm hovered in mid-air holding a cotton ball soaked in antiseptic, glassy eyes staring blankly at the ground. He looked rather pale, almost like he’d seen a ghost, and his face was downcast, yet somehow still unreadable. She supposed that years of concealing his emotions came naturally for him as well.

Marinette knew that Adrien’s relationship with his father was rather strained, particularly over the past year, with him becoming more and more strict and Adrien having to deal with increasing pressure to maintain a near-impossible standard of conduct. But judging by Adrien’s dramatic shift in mood, she couldn’t help but wonder if there was more to it than that.

She reached forward, lightly touching his opposite forearm to get his attention. His gaze whipped up to meet hers, his eyes revealing an ocean of sorrow. But he cleared his throat and gave her a small smile, that perfect default smile, the one that she hated seeing on him. Then he resumed tending to her various wounds, briefly apologizing for getting distracted.

She noticed in her peripheral vision a miffed-looking Nino pulling Alya to the other side of the room, speaking in hushed tones. She couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it sounded like they were disagreeing about something.

“–You can’t just go around making those kinds of accusations!” Alya hissed, almost too quiet for Marinette to hear. “It’s literally the worst time for that!”

“I won’t!” Nino whispered back. “... For now. But it doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop suspecting him. I’m telling you, he’s not a good dude! If he’s such a ‘perfect’ father, why isn’t he here right now?! After what just happened?” His posture drooped and he crossed his arms. “I just… I’m worried about Adrien, babe. What if he’s not actually okay?” he asked with a slight quiver in his voice.

“Oh, Nino…” Alya’s face softened as she brought him into a tight embrace. “Everything’s gonna be fine, hon. Don’t worry.”

She glanced over and made eye contact with Marinette, giving her a small smile; then she and Nino walked off together to a more secluded area to continue their private conversation.

Adrien finished wrapping up a nasty-looking gash on her shin, which had bled through her pants leg. He’d rolled up the fabric to treat the wound, and was now rolling it back down.

“Thank you, Adrien,” she said quietly. “I should get going, my parents are probably worried; they usually keep the news radio turned on in the bakery, so they’ve probably already heard about what happened.”

Adrien stood when she did. Always a gentleman, she thought with a smile.

“Will you be alright? Can I walk you home?” he asked.

Marinette spluttered incredulously. “You’re asking me if I’m alright?! After all that you just went through??”

He shrugged slightly, giving her a tiny, contrite smile. “Well… you went through it with me. And, as amazing as you are, you’re not unbreakable. I just wanna be there for you like you were for me today. And like every time you’ve been there whenever I needed someone.”

Marinette’s heart thumped loudly in her chest, touched by his concern and gratitude. He spoke so sincerely, and she could sense that many things were left unspoken, and there was a weight behind his words that she couldn’t decipher. “What about your car ride?”

“I…” he faltered slightly. “I’ll tell them to pick me up from your place. No biggie.”

“Well… if you’re sure. The company would be nice,” she relented.

“Great!” he said cheerfully, offering his arm. “You can be my seeing-eye mouse.”

“A what? A seeing-eye mouse?” she giggled. “Actually, that reminds me–” she paused, opening her purse and rummaging through it.

Adrien’s eyes grew wide as she conjured up his missing eyeglasses from within.

“I went looking for them before coming to find you. It was lucky that they were still there, in the locker room. One of the lenses has a small scratch, but they should still work fine until you can buy a new pair.”

Adrien let out a small, incredulous laugh, then put on his glasses. “I can’t believe you went back for them. You’re a lifesaver, Marinette; in so many ways. Thank you.”

Marinette’s face warmed at the compliment, despite trying hard to smolder the remainders of a flame that was once there. She cleared her throat and teased, “Can I still be your seeing-eye dog?”

“You mean, my ‘seeing-eye mouse’!”

She raised an amused eyebrow. “Why a mouse?”

“You’d be a mouse ‘cause you’re little and cute!”

Marinette blew a raspberry as she giggled. “You’re such a dork! Alright, I’ll do it, but you’d better be there when I need someone to fetch something from the top shelves!”

Adrien chuckled and gave her a wink. “That’s a promise.”

–––––

As some of you correctly guessed: YES! The peacock miraculous was used to create sentimonsters in the image of Adrien's old bodyguard to deceive him and take him back to Gabriel.

There's some plot decisions I have to make (whether to follow my original outline of what comes next or if I need to tweak some things to improve the flow of the story), so it's back to "normal" updates again, but I'll do my best to update a bit more consistently :)

#CW: kidnapping #Miraculous Ladybug #Ladynoir #Enemies AU #enemies to lovers #Marinette Dupain Cheng #Adrien Agreste #Chat Noir #Ladybug #fanfiction #Discordant Sonata #ML AU #aged up #Eden writes

158 notes · View notes

ramen-rambles · 5 years ago

Text

Quid Pro Quo

Pairing: Kirishima Eijirou x Reader

Warnings: 18+, mutual masturbation, suggestive texts

Word Count: 2.7K

Summary: From being a total stranger you met on a dead Discord server, to literally becoming one of your best friends — Kirishima was one of the most amazing things to ever happen in your life. But what happens when you accidentally screenshot his nudes?!

A/N: My first BNHarem server collab! I was really close to naming this fic Penis Pals, if I’m being honest LOL It’s a lot shorter than I wanted but I hope I did my baby justice. Thank you to my fellow Bakugou Fanclub members for hyping me up and helping me edit this piece. I literally couldn’t have done it without you guys, ILYSM! Read all the other amazing fics in this collab, here.

Taglist: @lady-bakuhoe @bratwritings @redbeanteax

♡ ⌒*ﾟ.❉・゜・。. ♡ ⌒*ﾟ.❉・゜・。. ♡ ⌒*ﾟ.❉・゜・。.

Ever since you were in high school, you had always looked up to Crimson Riot — a pro hero who’s strong, manly, and fearless. I mean, who wouldn’t like him? Now that you were in college, there have been many other heroes worthy of being called the best, but Crimson Riot was still going to be Number 1 in your eyes. So, to pay homage to your all time favorite hero, you decided to join a Crimson Riot Discord server.

You had started looking for any server invites through all platforms of social media. Google, Twitter, Tumblr, but nothing came up. You had started to lose hope, until you stumbled upon a very old server link on an equally old Reddit thread. You looked at the date it was posted and it seemed to have been made all the way back when you were in high school. You clicked on the link hesitantly, definitely not expecting it to work. However, much to your surprise, the link brought you straight to the server!

“Finally! Something that actually fucking worked!” You thought to yourself, after hours of scrolling though numerous pages of the internet.

You were a bit hesitant at first, not really knowing what to expect. Were people going to think you were weird for being such a nerd? What if people thought you were annoying? Or worse, what if no one liked you?

But that didn’t seem to be much of a problem… Considering that the server was rather dead.

You clicked through the channels — #general, #merch, #photos, #announcements; the last time anyone really said anything was nearly six months ago. “God dammit.” You should have known. All you wanted was a place to fangirl over Crimson Riot, was that too much to ask for?! You got all your hopes up, just for it to all come crashing down. Feeling a bit dejected, it seemed like you had no choice but to leave the server. Not like there was much of a point in staying anyways.

But then you saw a notification pop up on your screen.

RED RIOT [Today at 7:56 PM]

@Y/N Hey! How are you doing? I’m the admin for this Crimson Riot Discord. The name’s Kirishima. It’s nice to see a fresh face here :^)

Y/N [Today at 7:56 PM]

Oh hi! I’m doing good! I found your discord link on a really old Reddit thread so forgive me for asking but… Is this server still active? I was scrolling through the channels and everything seemed kind of dead tbh LOL

RED RIOT [Today at 7:57 PM]

Well, if I’m being honest, it’s fucking dead LMAO

Y/N [Today at 7:57 PM]

RED RIOT [Today at 7:58 PM]

It used to be pretty active before but people just kind of... stopped. I made this server back when I was in high school because I just LOVED Crimson Riot so much, ya know? He was the one person I really looked up to. Anyways, how did you even find this link? You must have looked real hard LOL

Y/N [Today at 7:58 PM]

HAHA I did, actually! Took me for-fucking-ever to find a server link that actually worked :( I’ve looked up to him since I was a kid too and so I really just wanted a place to express my gratitude for the role he played in my life. Sorry LOL I’m getting cheesy

RED RIOT [Today at 7:59 PM]

Well Y/N, I’m glad you found this server! You sound like a really great person and I’d love nothing more than to talk to you about our shared love for Crimson Riot, but this server is whack as fuck. Are you down to move to DMs instead?

Y/N [Today at 8:01 PM]

Fuck it. Why not?

You and Kirishima had been talking for a while now. Ever since you came across his Crimson Riot server, you two would talk almost every single day. You learned that he actually lived near you too. Call it fate. Exchanging phone numbers, following each other on social media, starting Snapchat streaks, meeting up with each other — the chemistry between you two made it seem like you’ve known each other your entire lives. The both of you had practically become best friends.

To you, maybe it felt a little bit more than just friends.

Currently, you were mindlessly scrolling through your Twitter feed when you saw that you had received a Snapchat notification, from, you guessed it. Kirishima. You were expecting it to just be a bland streak of his room or something but you saw something that made your fucking jaw drop.

A picture of Kirishima in a tight fitting tank top and a very noticeable bulge that was covered by a pair of dark grey sweatpants.

You felt your cheeks heat up, a red blush painting across your entire face. In a state of panic, you fumbled the phone in your hands and in the process you had heard a very audible click. You fucking screenshotted his snap.

Fuck.

You quickly went into your messages and texted him to try and explain yourself.

[Y/N]

WAIT SHIT. KIRISHIMA. I DIDN’T MEAN TO SCREENSHOT THAT. IT WAS AN ACCIDENT. I SWEAR

Replying almost immediately, you anxiously waited for what Kirishima had to say about your little mishap. You were seriously hoping that he was just going to let it go and you could both just act like nothing happened.

[Kirishima]

Wow, I didn’t think you’d be the type to screenshot people’s snaps like that, Y/N :(

[Y/N]

YOU DIPSHIT. I SAID IT WAS AN ACCIDENT. AND WHY ARE YOU SENDING ME SHIT LIKE THAT HUH?!

[Kirishima]

You telling me you didn’t like what you saw?

[Y/N]

Okay, fine, you looked good, SUE ME. Is that what you wanted to hear?

[Kirishima]

It’s only fair you send me one back, don’t you think?

You stared at your phone. What the actual fuck. Was Kirishima asking you to send him a fucking nude? You knew it shouldn’t have, but the thought of Kirishima wanting to see your body turned you on. A small shiver running down your spine at the possibility that he liked you in return.

[Y/N]

Excuse me, sir. I am NOT sending you a nude.

[Kirishima]

I didn’t ask for a nude, all I said was that you return the favor. Quid pro quo, ya know?

[Y/N]

Using big words like ‘quid pro quo’, smh. Since when did you become such a politician?

[Kirishima]

But, if you want to send a nude, who am I to say no? ;)

[Y/N]

Fucking fine. If I show you one, will you shut up?

[Kirishima]

Depends.

[Y/N]

On what, exactly?

[Kirishima]

On how good it is

Your eyes narrowed at his response. What does he even mean by that, ‘how good it is’? He should be grateful that you even considered sending him one! Based on your replies, it seemed like you were pissed, but in reality, your heart beat faster with every passing minute. You were never the type of girl to send nudes to anyone, but for Kirishima, you were willing to make a small exception.

You got up from your bed and rummaged through your closet, looking for something that was a bit more provocative. You picked out a red lace bodysuit that hugged your curves and cupped your perky breasts. Sitting in front of your mirror, you touched up your makeup and fixed your hair, checking yourself out one last time before you started taking pictures. You opened up Snapchat and tried multiple poses, making sure the camera captured your sultriness and how good your tits looked. To mock his teasing from earlier you captioned the photo, “Quid pro quo, my ass.” before hitting the ‘send’ button.

[Y/N]

Was that good enough for you?

You heard no response from him for a good five minutes. You started worrying. “Shit. Was that too much? Did I push it too far?” You chewed on the inside of your lip, anxiously waiting for any sort of reaction.

And then, your screen lit up again. Another Snapchat notification from Kirishima. But this time, it was way more revealing. He had sent you a picture of him palming his erection, and all it said was, “You’re not even here, and look what you did to me :(“

Feeling cocky and with a sudden burst of confidence, you cheekily replied, “Why don’t you come here then?”

In all honesty, Kirishima didn’t live that far from you. You two were only 15 minutes away from each other, meaning that he frequented your apartment whenever he felt like it. He came over a million times in the past, but this time was different. Very different, in fact. Anticipation was building at the pit of your stomach, but so was a familiar heat that began pooling in the middle of your underwear.

You tried denying your feelings for Kirishima but you couldn’t help it! Everything about him was perfect. His personality, his humor, his voice, his face, his body… You could go on and on about all the things you loved about Kirishima.

You would have been lying to yourself if you said that you’ve never thought about him with your hands in between your thighs. Thinking about his massive cock fucking your tight pussy, his fingers rubbing your clit in all the right places, or the way his tongue would feel sucking on your hardened nipples.

You’d always wonder if he ever felt the same way but he didn’t really seem like he was.

That was, until tonight.

You stared at the clock on your wall and saw that 10 minutes had passed, a loud knock on your door making you wake up from the dream like trance you seemed to be trapped in. You quickly turned the doorknob, letting Kirishima inside of your apartment.

Without saying a word, he pushed your back against the wall and began to roughly grab the side of your face. He captured your lips with his, meeting his kiss with the same aggressiveness, making your head spin at how good it felt to finally get a taste of him.

“Do you know how long I’ve waited for us to do this?” He panted, moving down to place sloppy kisses against the crook of your neck, leaving sharp bite marks and dark bruises littered all over your pretty skin.

“Haaaa, that should be my line” you moaned, “You know how many times I’ve touched myself to the thought of you?” You whispered teasingly, biting the soft flesh of his earlobes. “How many times I wished it was your fingers inside of me instead?” You trailed your fingers down to his, intertwining them with one another before you dragged him into your bedroom.

You pushed him down onto the mattress, gently getting on top of him and straddling his waist. Grabbing his hands, you placed them on top of your tits, giving them a rough squeeze before you began grinding your wet heat against his clothed cock.

”Fuck, Y/N, are you sure?” He groaned, “As much as I want this, I don’t want you to do anything you’re not comfortable with —“

“Eiji, shut up. If I didn’t want this, would I be this wet for you?” You slipped your panties off to the side, two of your fingers dipping into your cunt, showing off the slick that stringed in between your digits. “Here, see for yourself.” You brought your coated fingers up to his mouth, making him suck it until not a drop was left.

“Shit, you taste so fucking good,” He smirked, “Why don’t you show me how you touch yourself, princess?”

You slowly made your way off of him, leaning back to position your body against the plush sheets. Slowly spreading your legs, you made sure he got a good view, your pussy practically dripping from how aroused you had become. You snaked your hands down back against your thighs, fingers finding its way onto your throbbing clit. Kirishima was sitting in front of you, all of his clothes still on.

That didn’t seem very fair, now did it?

“Stroke your cock for me, Eijirou. Quid pro quo, right?” You said wickedly. You stood up quickly to remove the rest of your lingerie, Eijirou’s eyes glued to your body, watching your every move as you moved your hands back to their previous position.

Kirishima let out a small laugh before he finally stripped himself of his clothing, pulling down his boxers to reveal his impressive length that was already oozing precum. “Is this what you wanted to see?” You nodded desperately.

“You wanted to see me jerk off while I watch you touch that pretty pussy of yours?” Kirishima began moving his hand against his girth, gathering spit in his mouth before letting it drip onto the head. Lubricating his cock with a mix of precum and spit, he slowly started moving up and down his length. Matching your rhythm, as he watched intensely at the fingers that were still stuffed inside of your cunt.

Soft moans started escaping your plush lips, the collective sound of small whines, and frantic gasps beginning to fill the room. “Fuck, Eiji. You look so hot stroking your cock like that. Do you imagine that it was my pussy, instead?” You say, panting intensely.

“Fuuuuck. I’m gonna pound your tight little cunt so hard that you’re not going to be able to walk for days.” He sped up his pace, you quickly following suit. Your fingers pumping vigorously, you continued to rub tight circles over your sensitive clit.

You were getting closer and closer to the orgasm you craved so much, and the look that Kirishima had on his face indicated that he was too. Your cunt clenched tightly around your digits while Kirishima’s fist held a vice grip on his cock. You had been waiting for this moment for so long, the intensity of your orgasm was surely going to rip through you like a plundering tidal wave.

“A-ah, Eijirou! I’m so fucking close for you.” Your eyes squeezed shut as you felt yourself cum all over your fingers, your arousal gushing onto the bed sheets and covering the inside of your thighs.

Kirishima quickened his strokes, the sight of your pleasure the catalyst for his own release as he continued to jack hammer his cock at an animalistic pace. “Please, baby, cum for me, I wanna see you cum all over yourself.” You whined, watching closely as you patiently waited for him to reach his end. Your filthy words were the last push he needed.

“F-fuck Y/N! I love you so fucking much” he groaned loudly. A few more pumps, and ropes of his cum started painting his chest white, covering his sweaty body, as the remnants of both your orgasms stained the bed.

You both looked at each other with half lidded eyes, still trying to come down from your intense highs. Breathing heavily, you looked at him greedily and whispered, “You know, I’ve always wondered how good it would feel to fuck myself on your cock.”

“Well, I did say that I’d pound your cunt so hard you wouldn’t be able to walk for days...” Kirishima cooed as he ran his fingers along your exposed thigh,

“I’d be more than happy to show you, Princess.”

♡ ⌒*ﾟ.❉・゜・。. ♡ ⌒*ﾟ.❉・゜・。. ♡ ⌒*ﾟ.❉・゜・。.

#kirishima eijirou x reader #kirishima x reader #bnha x reader #bnha smut #bnha fanfiction #bnha #bnha kirishima

1K notes · View notes

eveningstar1516 · 3 years ago

Text

Rise of the Demon King ~ Chapter 9

Rise of the Demon King

Fic: Multi Chapter Paring: MC x Everyone (Mostly Lucifer) Type: Angst with a Happy Ending Total Word Count: 26,758 TW: Major Character Death, Reader gets stabbed with a sword through their chest so..., Abusive Parents, Past Child Abuse, Demon Hunters, Loss of Control Summary: You’ve done it. You’ve finally done it. You’ve managed to anger the demon king. Now you hold your head high as he hands down your sentence. AO3 Portal: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27065362 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~A/N: I gotta Discord server guys! It's primarily Obey Me but other fandoms are welcome as well. It's kinda baby and dead so me and the other members are looking to revive it and we'd love for you to come join us. A roleplay area is included :) https://discord.gg/F3YEmDZCPS Please remember to read and accept the rules once you join for access to all the channels. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Previously: “Of course, what are big brothers for. Anyway, about my payment, maybe you can forget about the money I owe ya?” Groaning, Levi started walking faster, leaving Mammon and his whining behind as he made his way back to the safety of his room. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHAPTER 9 - Not So Different After All (1754 words)

You were practicing your swordsmanship in the garden clearing when Michael approached you. You’ve been living with the council for 3 decades by now and was confidently running them like Lucifer used to. This left you little time for yourself and you cherished these moments to yourself. That doesn’t mean you don’t like teasing Michael from time to time.

“Good afternoon Y/N”

“Good afternoon to you too Mike. What’s up?”

“How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?” “Just be glad I don’t call you that at work. Anyway, how can I help you?”

“May I join you?”

“I don’t see why not, but on one condition. If I win, tell me why you despise Lucifer and why you refuse to call him by his new name. If you win, I’ll answer 2 questions with complete honesty, no restrictions on the type of question.”

Michael visibly stiffened at this. He contemplated this for a moment then agreed. He summoned his sword and stood opposite of me in a ready position. I matched his stance and parreyed off with him, signalling the start of our match. Michael started with a calculated quick strike to my neck. I brought my sword up to block his strike and tried to twist it from his grip but he pulled back and made a quick swing toward my left leg. I jumped up and switched to offence striking for his sword arm trying to land a hit. He saw this and backed away. This continued on for a few minutes. Michael attacking and me blocking and returning the favour. After a few more strikes, I saw an opening, he shifted his legs a little too wide. I dropped my weight and swept his feet out from under him. Before he realized, he hit the ground and I was standing above him, my right foot on his sword arm and my sword by his throat.

“Looks like I won.” I withdrew my sword and extended my arm to help him up. He grabbed my hand with a distasteful look on his face, ashamed at making such a mistake and losing to someone with less skill and combat experience than him.

“Where’d you learn to fight like that?”

Handing him a towel and some water I sat under a date tree and took a sip from my own bottle.

“Lucifer. I took an interest in it after seeing him practise one day and he took it upon himself to teach me, his excuse being that I should know how to protect myself if I insisted on taking up a blade. Enough of that, you lost, now can you tell me why you despise Lucifer so much?”

Michael took a seat next to me and leaned back against the trunk.

“You mean other than the fact that he went against Father, started a civil war, killed numerous angels, abandoned his duty, embraced the very sins that father forbade us from committing, birthed a demon of wrath, and willingly bowed down to the demon prince and still serves him to this day like a loyal lapdog all because he couldn’t take care of Lillith enough to keep her from trying to break one of our laws to save a human? No, no reason.”

“Wow, and I thought humans were the masters at holding grudges.” I took a swing of my water.

“Think about it, at the root of all that, Lucifer did it to protect his family, to protect his little sister. He may have embraced and embodied the sin of pride, but he pushed all of it away to save her. You don’t really think he serves Diavolo just because he asked him to? His pride would never allow it, and yet he does because by doing so, he can protect his family and the ones he loves. Isn’t that a virtue in Father's eyes, protecting loved ones no matter what you need to sacrifice?”

“Well yes, to an extent. You are supposed to do that, unless it means you defy him. If protecting your family results in you turning your back to him, he’d tell you to leave them behind.”

“Why do you keep calling Lucifer "Samael"?”

“That is the name Father gave him, that is the name I will call him. Samael was my brother and I don’t want to remember him for the destruction he caused but for the moments we shared as brothers. He was the pride of the heavens. Despite that, he embodied humility. He never took advantage of his authority. He always made sure the minority were heard. He worked himself to the point of exhaustion as Father's right hand. He never let the praise get to his head. Despite all that, he still embodied pride. He would never ask for help insisting that he could take care of things. He still took in his siblings and raised them, despite the burdens that were already placed on his shoulders. I used to look up to him and saw him as a role model. I accepted the fact that he is no longer an angel and is now a completely different being. In my mind, Lucifer and Samael are 2 separate creatures. I will remember him as Samael, my brother and best friend and Lucifer as the demon serving Lord Diavolo.”

“Would it make you feel better if I told you that they aren’t that different from each other? Samael may have taken all the burden and worked himself till he passed out from exhaustion, but Lucifer still does that. I can’t tell you the number of times I would enter his study just to find him clinging to consciousness trying to finish the never ending paperwork for both the Devildom and from his brother's antics. He does his best and works himself to the bone to make sure that his family has a roof over their heads, enough food to eat which I got to tell you is hard considering they are living with someone who embodies the sin of gluttony. He works himself to make sure that Diavolo doesn’t do the same and can focus on running his kingdom and school without having to worry too much about what goes on behind the scenes. Even with all those responsibilities he took, he still makes sure to be there and protect his family. He raised Satan as a first time father with no knowledge on demonic children. He always set aside some time each week, no matter how busy he is to spend some time with the rest of us. He may be harsh, but he isn’t heartless. He may look incapable of it, but he is very caring and compassionate towards the ones he holds close to him. He is still very much the Samael you knew, he just looks a little different.”

“Was your intention just to tell me these things so that I wouldn’t act distasteful to you or Samael?” “No, I just wanted you to see things from an outsider's perspective, nothing more.”

With that, I got up and left Michael in the garden to think about what I had said as I went to shower and finish up any outstanding work before dinner.

In the Devildom After they lost Y/N

After they lost Y/N, Asmo could barely function. Some days, he would lock himself in his room and not come out for days on end. When Beel would come and drop off some food, Asmo would always insist he just leave it outside the door. When Beel would come back to collect the plate, he found that only a small portion was eaten and that more than half of the food was left. They would never find out that it was because he was unintentionally starving himself and that he was dropping his self care routine. Other times he would leave for days on end and when he did eventually come home, he was either stoned or drunk out of his mind, but he always had a lingering scent of sex on him. It continued on like this for weeks before Satan found him. Asmo had just come back after being missing for a week and once again refused to leave his room. This time, Satan insisted on delivering his food. He needed to check on his little brother no matter how much Asmo didn’t want him to. When he got to the door he knocked and announced he was coming in. Without waiting for a reply, Satan broke the lock on the door and was greeted with an emotionally exhausted and physically wrecked Asmo laying face up on his bed. Tears streaming down his face. Satan closed the door and looked around the room noticing how everything was thrown around and the state of what used to be one of the most organized rooms in the house, now looking like a hot mess. Carefully, he cleared a spot on his dresser, making sure nothing got damaged in the process and set the tray down. Next he went to the washroom, equally messed up, and located a washcloth. He ran it under some warm water and went back to Asmo, carefully wiping away any tears and smudged make-up. Slowly, Asmo opened his eyes to look up at the soft expression on Satan’s face. He turned his head the other and screwed his eyes shut.

“Asmo, look at me.”

When he didn’t turn his head, Satan asked again, a little softer and put a comforting hand on his shoulder to ground him.

“Asmo, can you please look at me?”

Slowly, Asmo turned his head towards Satan and reluctantly opened his eyes. Satan gently lifted him up and pulled him into an embrace. Asmo couldn’t take it anymore and broke down on Satan’s shoulder. Satan rubbed soothing circles on Asmo’s back and stroked his tangled hair, grounding him. Eventually, when Asmo stopped crying, he pulled away from Satan with a sad smile on his face. Satan cupped his right cheek.

“It’s alright, we all miss them too. It’s ok to break down. When was the last time you took care of yourself?”

“I don’t know,” Asmo mumbled.

“That’s alright. Let’s get some food into your stomach first.”

Satan spent the rest of the night by his brother's side, cleaning his room and slowly, step by step, bringing back how his brother usually looked like. A glowing masterpiece, worthy of both envy and praise.

21 notes · View notes

twilighthiro · 4 years ago

Text

Scales and Feathers

So, this was how he would die.

Not by a demon, old age, or even keeping his brothers companions alive.

Just a stupid CLIFF.

Glancing down, Legend spotted a faint line of blue.

In the Island, the suit had worked perfectly, unlike how in reality it always took a moment before saving him. Just another way how he should've known the Island was merely a dream.

That moment's delay would kill him now.

Legend closed his eyes, forcing himself to relax.

It would be over soon.

A voice screaming his name shot Legend's eyes open.

Green, red, blond-

Warriors.

"What the-"

Warriors caught up with him, suddenly blocking Legend's vision with gold-brown.

The general's hands felt like vices on his shirt and he was sure he was gripping just as hard on Warriors' tunic and chainmail.

The weightless feeling of approaching death slowed down.

"How-"

Legend twisted his neck, spotting the second of the two giant brown-gold things.

Wings.

Although Legend's head is smashed between Warriors' wing and his head, he can imagine the general's face: eyes constantly moving. Mind whirring to find the best way to escape. Face frozen in a stern scowl.

Despite Warriors' obvious skill with his wings and a massive redirection in the air, they hit the water.

Wars' wings splash and his legs kick, releasing one arm to begin a treading motion.

Legend pushes with the mer-tail, keeping his head high above the water to see the boulders and trees in the way.

They jerk to a stop, ignoring Warriors' cry of pain. While Legend had spotted all things IN the river and had successfully kept the two of them free, he hadn't seen the surprisingly solid tree snagged in the cliff.

Warriors pulls, releasing his other arm to grab the boulder. Legend pushes against the river, boosting both him and the captain up.

They succeed, gasping and laughing and wheezing as Warriors wraps his free wing around Legend.

The feather-covered limbs are soaked, as are the two of them. This, combined with the magic of the mermaid suit, prevents the tail from forming back into legs.

"So.. Wings, huh?"

"Mermaid tail, Leg. You're... just as strange as I."

LOADING....

They stay perched there for a long time, although it was mostly Legend trying to stay on without legs and Warriors trying to dry the wing not ensnared.

He had nearly finished with the one when thunder rolled and Legend hissed a curse.

"Let's get the other wing free."

"I won't be able to keep grip in the rain." Warriors says, even as he turns toward his stuck-and definitely injured-wing.

"The river should slow down-or at least, get down this mountain. I can get us down a waterfall safely, if one comes."

That gets a chuckle out of Warriors. "I wonder what needed THAT kind of skill."

"Oh, the normal way. A friend make me learn after I saved the country."

A snap and a curse, and Warriors is free.

He flaps his freed wing, checking for the damage and brushing off the water despite himself.

The first drops of rain come, and Legend took a deep breath.

Warriors, now perched dangerously, pulled his wings in, as if he were to be walking around.

Strong hands on his shoulders signal Legend to kick off, going faster and faster down the river as he tries to stay just below the water's surface.

Legend was right. He DID know how to navigate a waterfall.

Through the blindness from getting constantly getting smacked in the face by a drinkable liquid, Warriors admired the blue-orange detail of Legend's tail.

Not that he would tell the veteran. The guy hadn't quite reach the level of getting vocalized personal thoughts just yet.

And he was sure Legend was thinking the same thing.

Silently, Warriors thanked the Hero's Spirit that bound them all together for the ability to communicate without words.

It was quite effective when Legend needed a quick alert on what was ahead, like a freefloating log.

The storm eventually stopped, (long after the waterfall) and with it came the time.

Daybreak.

When the river FINALLY calmed to the point of Legend poking his head above it, Warriors indicated the approaching sand.

"We can rest there. When my wings dry I can search for the others from above."

Legend replied when they got onto the shore. "Got experience with that?"

"A vast amount of the war was trivialized by me just flying over the battlefield and torching the place with my rod. It was quite simple to answer SOS calls."

"No wonder you were antsy about anyone leaving your sight when you started caring."

"You noticed?!"

The pair laughed at that.

With a quick tug, Warriors pulled Legend the two inches he needed to revert his tail to legs.

"So that's why you don't like pants."

"No, that's an entirely different story involving dresses with fantastic buffs. The tail appears regardless of pants or not without hiccups."

They fell into silence after that, simply recovering.

"Are you aware your nails hurt?"

"Was I gripping hard enough to get through your tunic?"

Legend nodded, before falling asleep.

Warriors felt himself tip, and decided to tempt fate by sleeping himself.

Wings were quite useful umbrellas, even while waterlogged.

The pair woke simultaneously, blinking in the afternoon sunlight.

The first sound was of Legend, snapping to himself as he breathed feathers and whatever Warriors missed last time he cleaned.

Chuckling, Warriors sat up, lifting his wings by proxy.

"Those things are heavy, pretty boy."

"Not my fault someone fell asleep where they could land on you."

Their banter lasted a while longer, until they remembered they weren't back in camp.

Warriors stood up, shaking the dust from his wings.

"I'll search from the air."

Legend rolled to his side to give more space as Warriors prepared to lift off.

One giant flap was all it took for Warriors to become a speck in the sky.

As Legend waited, his mind began cooking thoughts that were saved for times like this.

Like what was the name of that language of that word he understands and used to describe that thing. And other such nonsense, like how his Hytopian counterparts were doing.

Considering the pair, they'd probably take out any black-blooded monster with the power of the legendary dress and that other outfit, plus other physics-breaking item combinations they undoubtedly came up with when he left.

The loud sound of wings breaks his train of thought, and he glances to the sky and spots the brown-gold of Warriors' wings.

The captain landed smoothly, a grin on his face.

"Found 'em."

END.

Harpy!Warriors isn’t mine. He belongs to @reine-does-things, and you can find it on the LU discord if you search bar.

#linked universe #lu legend #lu warriors #warriors has wings and its cia's fault #writings #scales and feathers #mermaid suit #harpy!warriors

44 notes · View notes

thethirteenthcrow · 4 years ago

Text

The Shyan Shipping Society Writing Challenge ✍️💕

Hello dear shippers!

My name’s Zhalia, a fanfic writer on archive of our own. you might know me from my stripper!Ryan au, or the cinderella au or from the many comments i leave on your amazing works.

Since October, i’ve been hosting very lowkey writing challenges on the Shyan Shipping Society Discord server. and i figured, i’d let good ol’ tumblr get a piece of it!

this is a fun lil' challenge to practice your writing with random prompts!

(shout out to @helloitsvehere for making the amazing header here and sorry to keep bugging you on it but it looks really amazing now darling <3)

✨RULES✨

✧ the challenge is held at monthly, we don't want to pressure anyone too much and we want to give you enough time to work! on top of that, the minimum amount of words for this challenge is 50, which is a very low bar, it's no school, this is for fun!! also don't worry if you miss a month.

✧ from the day we set the prompt, you have one month to meet the challenge. with this, we request a chapter or a start. if a prompt inspires u to write more than a oneshot or one chapter, feel free to expand as much as you can outside the challenge! everyone is requested to post their submissions on the same day (so say we start at october 1st, then you're only allowed to submit your submissions on october 31st, no sooner). We then hope to announce the new prompt on, for example, november 1st to continue the cycle, but it may differ at times.

✧ There are no specifications to your writing. you may write however you like, a story, a description, a poem, anything is allowed. you're free to write in any rating, be it G or E-rated. we prefer M/E of course, cause we're thirsty like that. if you’re an artist, you’re free to join too! more elaboration in the FAQ below :D.

✧ if you have ideas for prompts, please DM me on Discord or mail me on [email protected] ! i love to hear em <3 (keep reading for more information on the challenge)

i can’t wait to see all your lovely works! i’m really stoked to see and chat with you and learn all that’s going around in your wonderful minds.

much love,

Zhalia💖

✨FAQ✨

o What is the Shyan Shipping Society (Server)?

The shipping society is a discord server owned by @bradpistachio where a bunch of shippers gather to chat about anything: their lives; the boys; other fanworks like fanfics and fanart; annoying antis; we have a writing lab to talk about your own works, and much more! The server is filled with amazing artists like madamecrimson, @helloitsvehere, @pizzacastella, sonzaishinai and many more. The server is an active and welcoming community. In the server, I also roll out the updates for this challenge and answer all your questions. Will we see you there?

o Do i need to join the server to post?

It's not required! The server is a lil' bonus, a place where you can talk with fellow shippers about anything, but also where i will be reminding you of the challenge. We have handful of channels dedicated to this writing challenge, so it might help you out. It's also easier for me to follow, and whenever you have questions i will reply faster there than anywhere else. But, again, it's not necessary.

o If i join the challenge once, am i required to join every month?

Most definitely not! You're free to join and leave whenever you want. Sometimes a prompt doesn't inspire you, or life dragged you away from writing and that's completely valid! This challenge is supposed to be a fun way to motivate you to express yoursef through your art, but it's not school so don't ever feel pressured :).

o What tags do i include, what are the ratings we work in?

There are no required ratings and/or tags for you to use. In general, the prompts are all focused on Shyan, but if you'd like to add Standrew as a background relationship, feel free!! If the prompt is Watcher-oriented, but you feel like you need a bit of that spice that Curly brings with him, i encourage you! On top of that, you're free to choose whichever ratings you feel fit best. Personally, i mostly live off of M- and E-rated fics, but if you're uncomfortable with graphic descriptions of anything, and would rather keep it a fluffy G-rated fic, then knock yourself out! I believe you know what's best for your work!

On the shipping server, the prompt will have a set of recommended tags, these are ideas i'd write the prompt in, but they aren't mandatory. If it says 'friends to lovers' but you'd rather write 'established relationship' then feel free! It's your work after all.

o Is there a minimum and/or maximum word count?

There is a minimum word count of 50 words right now, to show that you're seriously participating (i mean, wouldn't want "he smiled, they kissed, they fucked, the end" as a fic, right?). Your work does not have to be finished in order to fulfill the prompt, you can write one chapter, or one paragraph and edit it later when you have more time. If a prompt inspires you enough to write a long fic about it, don't feel pressured to finish it within a month! Take your time!! All we ask is for you to have written a start, and post that to the collection.

o i am no writer, but i’d love to make art for this in another way, is that possible?

Of course! originally the challenge was only made for writers, because the server was filled with a majority of writers. however, over the past few weeks we’ve had a handful of artists join our little community as well, people like sonza and @berakangkang. Sonza has blessed us by filling the October prompt as well, so if you’re an artist and you’d like to participate, please join! we love love love your art. honestly. the server goes wild on fanart.

o When do i post my submission?

Everyone who joins the challenge, posts their submission on the same day. This is the last 48 hours of a month - CET timezone. The next prompt will have been rolled out a day before we open submissions, so you can get familiar with it for a day or two before starting on it.

o I don't think i'll reach the deadline, now what?

You can contact me privately about this through our discord server - for fast replies - or via my email ([email protected]). I will open the collection for you so you can submit it later. Keep an eye on the deadline though, a challenge won't be reopened a month after the deadline.

o I have an amazing idea for a prompt, where do i submit it?

On the discord server, we have a channel named 'prompts-and-ideas' where some of these prompts even came from, you can submit them there and @ me so i'd know it's for the writing challenge.

If you don't have discord or don't want to join the server, you're free to mail me your idea with Shyan Shipping Society Prompt Idea as subject! I look forward to your ideas!

here’s the link to the parent collection on Archive Of Our Own, where you can always find the new prompts for the next months, and where you can post your work once i open the collection.

i can’t wait to see your works! i’m very excited to see what you all can come up with <3

ps,

this is the first time i host a writing challenge like this. i’m still learning my way around ao3′s function to make prompt meme challenges, and there may always be little bugs in the system, because i have but a small brain. i rely on carl-bot to remind me to post and open submissions and everything, to keep it running smoothly. i am trying my very best to make this fun for everyone. also i crave feedback, so if you have any comments, complaints, ideas, critique, please hit me up!!

oh and yeah i am very inactive on the tumblrs because i don’t uh catch the vibe of this platform but i’m trying. i’m trying. 👉👈

#shyan #we took an oath #skeptic believer #buzzfeed unclean #shyan shipping society #shyan shipping society writing challenge #fanfic #fanfics #archive of our own #archiveofourown #ao3 #writing challenge #please bear with me i have but a small brain #zhalia does a thing #zhalia's writing challenge #discord #discord server

55 notes · View notes

airquietworks · 4 years ago

Text

A Clash of Icebound Hearts (IzuOcha) (Oneshot)

Summary: “The version of him she needed had emerged again. Not a friend. Not a lover. A rival.”

Ochako knows she is a long way from being a hero that could match Deku. But when she is unable to save him from a severe injury, she questions whether she is worthy of a place at his side. She must find a way to prove her strength, to both herself and to him. Even if that means risking their relationship.

________________________________________

Uravity struggled to breathe as she pushed through the wind and snow, sheer terror seizing her desperately heaving lungs.

Nonetheless, she ran with everything she had. The elements fought against her, the cold biting into her flesh and the twisting white obscuring her vision. She refused to let it slow her. A life was on the line - one far more precious to her than any other.

The Paranormal Liberation Front’s attack on the city charged the air, filling it with shouts, screams and thundering explosions. People called out in need, far more than she could hope to rescue - though she had already helped plenty. She carried on as the crying battered her ears. She had to trust her friends would get the job done.

“He can’t...be...that far…” she muttered to herself between breaths. Civilians and heroes alike ran in the opposite direction, but she paid them no heed.

The discordant sounds of combat were easy to follow. The crowds began to thin, as they ran away from the forces of nature at the heart of it all.

Gritting her teeth, she pushed her legs even faster, forced to forgo weightlessness or else get bounced around in the wind. She turned a corner, barreling headfirst into the fray.

Uravity had little time to react to the scene before her. The major intersection was completely wrecked. Broken screens and windows dotted the buildings, the glass scattered onto the streets below. The ground had become uneven, broken into chunks as if crushed underneath the weight of titans.

But none of that got her attention for long. Deku - the target of her rescue - floated in the air, twisting and turning away from sharp, deadly tendrils shooting out from Shigaraki. The villain to end all hung menacingly from on high, a devil laying waste to the land below.

One hit could be her hero’s end - but she knew that would never cause him to flee. She could not see any of the other heroes who must have engaged, but she was not surprised he was the last one standing. Even if he was not supposed to be here at all.

The gravity hero leapt into the air, triggering her Quirk on herself, sending out ropes from her left gauntlet to anchor to a leaning lamp post. She floated closer to the encounter, readying herself to act quickly as necessary.

Deku surged upward, intent on closing the gap between him and his foe. But he did not immediately react to three massive hunks of concrete hurtling toward him from different directions, drawn in by some unseen force. Uravity did not think - she pushed herself off the post, rocketing towards the fight. She sent more ropes out, desperate to reach him.

He managed to smash through two, but the third crashed into his left side before she could secure him. She cried out as the ropes coiled around his descending body and she quickly pulled them in. She barely managed to get him out as a surge of darkened tendrils penetrated the air where Deku had been mere moments ago.

Uravity triggered her Quirk on her charge as soon as she had him in her arms. Without a word, she whacked the nearly unconscious man in the back of the neck, sending him the rest of the way to sleep. This was a rescue mission - and he would bolt from her if he found the opportunity. She could not afford that.

In her next breath, she let herself plummet, barely dodging out of the way of another attack from the villains’ master. She tapped a button on her belt, sending out a distress beacon to her location. When she carefully hit the ground, she sprinted with everything she had, knowing two lives were on the line.

A burst of energy in the air signaled the arrival of back up - precisely who, she did not risk checking. Lungs burning, she pushed herself through the howling wind towards relative safety.

She squeezed Deku towards her, shifting his limp body to get him hanging on her back. Full of adrenaline, her pulse pounded in her ears. She kept her mind focused as much as she could on putting one foot in front of the other - and not on the near-death experience they had barely escaped.

They had to live - and fight another day.

_________________________________________________

Ochako’s brows furrowed as she watched the steady rise and fall of Izuku’s chest. With nothing else in the hospital room to listen to but the sound of his breathing, it became monotonous. She used to find calm in hearing peaceful breath. Now, it acted as a reminder of how little things had changed.

Once again, she found herself looking over the prone form of Izuku in a hospital bed. Bandages covered his skin, particularly around his left arm which had taken the brunt of the impact. He had suffered worse injuries, but it still did her heart no good seeing him like this, out cold for over a day now.

Same as it ever was.

I could not be there in time to help him.

The thought rang around in her mind, over and over again. If she had arrived mere seconds sooner, he might have avoided any injury - and kept fighting. For all the effort she had put into training - specifically to save heroes - she was unable to save Izuku from getting hurt like this. Worse still, if she had even been one second later, there might not even be a body here for her to mope over. They were no strangers to brushes with death - but something about his life being in her hands made everything far more terrifying than it used to be.

It did not help that he leapt into the fray and bit off more than he could chew - again. It was not surprising, but as the danger of their lives increased, so too did her frustration with it. He had torn away from their class’s group - assigned to backline rescue as third-year students - without a second thought. She could never fully understand his reckless zeal, as much as she admired it.

Deku is a hero who would always charge in, alone if need be, to save people. Even if it meant leaving those who could not keep up with him behind.

Even if it meant leaving her behind.

Ochako groaned, putting a hand over her beating heart. She shook her head to drag her thoughts out of a spiral. She refused to be ruled by her haywire emotions - a difficult war, which added to her frustration.

Things had changed. They were together now. Despite her better judgement, she had let herself fall into that heavenly tempest when he had invited her in. Awkward dates, relaxed companionship, their first shy kisses - it was magic. Her unchained heart breathed a new sense of life and bliss into her.

Now, that heart hammered around inside, violently lashing out over his safety - and her failure.

I could not be there in time to help him.

She balled her fists into her jeans. If he only would just stay still and do what he was supposed to, for once. If he did not rush headlong into wherever the fire burnt the hardest. If he would do the rational thing. If he would not run off, turning her back on her, every single time, leaving her to chase after his shadow.

But he would not be him then. The greatest hero on Earth. Her mind warred against her heart over how much she could reasonably fault him for it.

The seconds ticked on. Despite all her effort, nothing had changed.

I’m not good enough to help him.

Then she would have to find a way to get good enough.

The sound of movement broke the uneasy peace in the room. Ochako gasped as Izuku began to stir, his eyes finally opening. His gaze moved slowly, surveying his condition; he visibly relaxed after a moment, a hospital bed all too familiar to him.

“Good to see you awake, Deku.” She scooched her chair closer. He gave her a gentle smile, one she could not find it in her to return.

“You saved me,” he said. “Thank you for that. And every other time. I owe you so much.”

“Don’t mention it,” she replied quickly. The line made her squirm in her chair. She appreciated it, but the sentiment strangely hurt. It felt wrong with him injured like this - because of both their mistakes.

But as the smile ran away from his face, guilt coursed through her. She should push her feelings aside here; he had just woken up, after all. She reached out to grasp his loose left hand, squeezing it carefully to avoid triggering her Quirk. He responded in kind, but his weak grip did not return a sense of comfort.

“What happened?”

She let out a sigh, dreading the question. She disentangled herself from his hand, leaning back into her chair.

Ochako did her best to recount the day’s events - her rescue effort, the professional backup arriving to re-engage with a worn-down Shigaraki and the villains fleeing when the battle started to turn, content with the damage done. Low casualties, but plenty of destruction and injuries. The world sinking deeper into a pit of fear, hero society alive but getting ever closer to the brink.

His demeanor shifted as the story went on. His eyes became downcast, his fingers tensing into his bedsheets. He turned his head away from her, staring out into the snowy landscape outside.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I couldn’t stop him. I was not strong enough. But I will be next time.”

Her heart sank into her stomach, even though she completely expected that response. He would always be eager to leap back into the fight right away, even as he had just barely begun to recover from his injuries

When the time came, he would do it alone. Whatever the reason, he would not likely ask for help in this battle. Help usually to be thrust onto him - but she could not consistently offer it when it counted.

This was a battle between two nigh-unstoppable beings. She lacked the strength to earn a “we” from him. He would leave her behind, again.

The thought tasted so bitter on her tongue. “How are you going to do that, Deku?” His head swung back toward her, his eyebrows quirked above his head. “Come again?” “How are you going to survive against him?” She clenched her fists. They vibrated intensely, as she imagined his prone form hanging in the air, without her close enough to save him. “Ochako, are you okay?” She blinked and cursed herself when realized a couple of stray tears had escaped her attempts to shackle them. “I’m fine.” He stretched a hand out but could not hope to reach her. “You’re-” “What are you going to do from here?” The boy withdrew his hand as if she had struck him. It pained her to see it - but she ignored that pain within the storm of her other emotions. “There may not be anyone else who can stop him now.” His fierce green eyes answered her impassioned stare. “It’s going to be hard. I know my life will be on the line. But I’ll do whatever I have to.” It was the only answer he would ever give. She would never factor into that equation. In this, Uravity could never be his partner. She could never be his equal. She rubbed at her eyes as a few more tears escaped. She had to get a hold of herself. She could not afford to waste time. Ochako took a deep, steadying breath and rose. She had work to do. “I know you will. Because you’re you.” She grabbed a coat hanging around the back of her chair, turning her back on him. “I promised myself I’d always be there to save you. But you’re making that difficult. I guess I’ll have to push myself harder, too.” She headed towards the exit. There were many long days of training ahead of her if she wanted to make herself stronger. The bed creaked behind her - far too much for how much he should be moving. “Ochako, wait, please!” She stopped in place but did not turn around. “I can’t wait.” She took another step. “I know the person I’m chasing won’t wait for me.” The threshold was upon her. She paused one more time, glancing backwards. His hands shook, while his eyes stretched wide open. The pained expression seared itself into her mind. She hated herself for putting that there. “Rest up. Don’t push yourself too hard.” She ripped her glance away from him. She had to escape. “I know you can do it.” For the first time since they had met, she was the one leaving him behind. ______________________________________________

The rising sun offered little warmth against the chill of the morning. Ochako kept herself suspended in midair. She stretched, moving through a variety of attacking forms, testing both her strength and endurance. On another day, the glorious orange hues of the early morning, reflecting off the untouched snow below, might have inspired awe in her. But floating 50 feet above the ground - right over the roof of her student dorm - she could not spare the loss of focus for even a second. Her gut churned. She punched. The bile kept bubbling in her throat. She kicked. She refused to be felled by her queasiness. Her life revolved around this now. She pushed her body to the brink each day, from dawn to dusk, training. She had never been a slouch, but she had a better understanding now of how much further she had to go to achieve her goals. The rays of the sun above could not reach her, nor could the chill flowing across her skin. She would deal with worse soon. This was nothing. The loud beeping of her phone from the rooftop signaled the end of her drill. She carefully descended towards it, turning her Quirk on-and-off to guide her descent and practice her fine-control skills. With exactly 15 minutes to get to her first class, she grabbed her bag and leapt right off the roof, bounding towards the main school building. It had taken some thought to develop the system, but it had worked perfectly so far. She rose before anyone else in her dorm to get hard training in. She avoided the morning rush in the common rooms, taking a direct and solitary route to the classroom. The best way to start the day without any hassle. Her feet touched the ground in front of the school, and she took off in a sprint towards her class. The timing was always a little tight - she needed to ensure she made it with time to spare, but as little of it as possible. That would leave the smallest amount of opportunity for any chatter or distractions. But her spirits inevitably came crashing down as she found herself at the Class 3-A door. The wood imposed more than it had ever before, looming large over her head. With a tired sigh, she kept her head down and opened the doorway. She felt the eyes of her classmates drawn to her. It was not unusual for entrants to garner attention, but the intensity of their stares penetrated far deeper into her than they normally would.

Ochako carefully stepped forward. She lifted her head just enough, putting on a small smile. She had to keep up appearances. She repeated a mantra in her head - I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m fine - as she headed toward her desk near the back. She kept her eyes forward, pointedly avoiding eye contact with anyone.

Despite her best efforts, she felt Izuku’s gaze on her, a flash of green in her peripheral vision. Her heart beat faster - threatening to break through the chains she had surrounded it with again - as she neared the front row of desks where he sat, waiting for her, every day. For a week now, she had done everything in her power to avoid him. To avoid addressing these feelings burning at her core, that none of her training completely shook off. To prevent a confrontation with him about her anger, her misery, her love. To instead focus on working for the greater good of the world - and him. To push past any of the distractions that might prevent her from getting as strong as she needed to be. “Hey, Ochako, how is it-” “Hello, Midoriya. Fine.” The cold reception did the trick to freeze him in place, allowing her to pass him by. The icy walls between them had to stay up, for now. She could not know what might happen if she let them fall, with her heart and mind at war with each other. Soon. She would deal with it soon. She just needed a bit more time. Her heart refused to end things with him completely, not when it had tasted the sweet nectar of romantic bliss. She just had to find a way to rebalance things - when she could get a better hold of her heart again. Ochako reached her desk and busied herself with getting ready for class. She felt the stares of her friends on her. But with perfect timing - she had ensured it - Aizawa came into the room and got the attention off her. She scribbled furiously in her notebook as her instructor droned on. She let her mind fall into the day's lessons on heroics, a headspace she felt safe in. But despite her best efforts, her eyes wandered toward the messy green hair of the man she loved. She could not see his face, but his hand moved at a rapid pace, dutiful as ever in his studies. She frowned and followed suit. Soon. She would figure things out soon. Just as soon as she was good enough to walk by his side again. _____________________________________________ The cool water was mercy as she chugged it down her throat. Ochako drank eagerly, her sweat-stained body demanding nourishment. She felt aches all over after a difficult sparring session, but she got a strange enjoyment out of them. They were proof of her ability to push herself, something she would continue to do. By her side, she heard her Izuku drinking along with her, his hurried breath matching hers. “You’re...getting a lot harder… to pin,” Ochako said. The extra aches were a testament to that. His technical fighting skills had improved so much in the span of the mere weeks since they began training together.

He smiled gently at her. “That was a heck of a move, though. Where did you learn it?”

“Something I’ve been working on my own.” She stretched her arms upward, unable to contain the pride in her voice. “Got to keep things fresh if I’m going to keep up with you, right?” “I could say the same to you.” He glanced back toward the training ring, a small corner in the U.A. gym complex for hand-to-hand, generally Quirkless, sparring.

It was a place they liked to frequent - and a place where Ochako reigned supreme, thanks to her Gunhead Martial Arts knowledge. Nobody in their class had been able to take her on successfully without a Quirk. “You’re getting loads better though! You had me on the ropes.” “Still got a long way to go. But thank you again - senpai.” Ochako felt heat pool into her cheeks at the title. She cringed, leaping up off her seat. ”I told you not to call me that! Gosh, that still sounds so weird.” She shook her head, trying to shake it off her. “You’ve taught me way more than I’ve taught you!

“I beg to differ. You’ve helped me so much, Ochako.”

He stood up and held a hand out to her. She gladly took it, as they walked together toward the exit. Their sweat mingled between their grasps, but the sensation was not unpleasant. It felt right, somehow.

“You’ve helped me way more, Deku.”

“Agree to disagree.”

“We can settle it in the ring next time!”

“Well, that hardly seems fair.”

They laughed together, lifting each other’s spirits. A precious moment of peace in a time of darkness.

On impulse, she grabbed onto him and reached up, planting a kiss on his freckled cheek. A thrill surged through her as he blushed and huffed, the hue far too adorable on his boyish face. He affixed her with a questioning look. He opened and closed his mouth, unable to find the words. Her kisses tended to do that to him, to her endless delight. “Wha…?” “Payback for earlier,” she said. “Had to embarrass you too.” Izuku blinked at that, before rejoining her in mirth. Being with him was a respite - one she was glad to no longer deny herself. Walking side-by-side, she knew that they would be all right. _____________________________________________

Ochako groaned as her phone’s alarm clock blared at a far-too-early hour. Nonetheless, she grabbed onto it with her oversized sleeping mitten, turning it off and forcing herself to get out of the bed. The remnants of the dream - an echo of far more pleasant days - added to her sour mood as she got herself changed. She did not want to think about him and her together, but her sleeping mind often forced that on her. It added to the misery of it all, but she would not let it break her concentration or impede her daily training.

She grimaced as she peeked out of her window. The wind blew the flakes of snow in a vicious spin. Not a promising start to the day. The weekend had arrived, which meant her scheduled run that would eat up a lot of the morning. Even with the weather against her, she would not be dissuaded. She would endure whatever the world threw at her and push through anyway. That was what it meant to be a hero, after all. She dressed into her athletic gear and exited the back door of the dorm building. The unrelenting white greeted her with a cold embrace that sent goosebumps across her exposed face. The wind attacked her, making it difficult to see far. Gritting her teeth, she stepped onto the snow-laden path, stretching a bit before starting up a jog, warming her body up as best she could. The difficulty made itself immediately apparent. The slippery ground required extra force in her steps to avoid falling. Even if she knew the path like the back of her hand, it was difficult carrying on. But she would do it. For him. For her. For the future. “Hey, Ochako! Could I join you for this one?” Izuku’s voice sent a jolt down her spine. She swung her head behind her; there he was, a short distance away with an eager grin, wearing the same athletics uniform. The air howled again, pushing against her. She frowned at him and kept running. This was not the time to entertain thoughts of rekindling their stalled relationship. She had training to do. She had to focus on that. This was a test; her will against her aching heart. But Izuku could not be so easily shaken off. He sped up to her, nearly getting to her side on the path. The wind and snow continued to beat down on them, ripping through the space between. “Look, I was hoping we could talk after this!” Izuku shouted, voice penetrating through the wind. “I want to give a proper apology. And I want...I want to talk about us. I’ll accept whatever you have to say. But I just want to sort things out.” It hurt her ears for his voice to ring so desperately. To hear the pain she had caused. A part of her roared in anguish, demanding she relent. She bit her lip and pushed down those feelings. She was not ready for this. She could not do this right now. Ochako angled her head to the side, hoping her words could carry loudly enough. Her breathing came hard now, but she kept up her pace, determined to keep ahead of him.

“I don’t really want to talk right now!” With that, she kicked into another gear. Izuku had kept a respectable distance in recent days, able to take a hint. But this time, he refused to relent. He matched her increased speed, using a bend to close the distance. It was a race now. Her, Izuku and the raging winter between them. She had to keep ahead or risk her resolve crumbling. If she had to outpace him to achieve that, she would. “You keep running!” Izuku shouted again, voice breaking through the crisp air. “But we have to deal with this at some point!” “This is a bad time!” She raised her voice, not disguising her ire as she began to sprint. She hoped he would not trigger his Quirk for this, but he hardly needed to, his natural physique allowing him to keep closing the distance. She drew into the fire burning within her - the passionate determination she had to improve. She fueled herself with it, pushing to her limit. She could not even feel the cold anymore. “Ochako, please!” She refused to heed him. “This is what I have to do!”

“Just tell me what you want from me, and I’ll do it!” His footsteps became more rapid as she tried to widen their gap, staying a few strides ahead of him.

“I know you can’t do it, so I have to do this!” She did not look back. She could not afford to.

“What are you talking-”

He let out a wordless yelp, followed by a loud thud. She slowed her run until she could stop to turn. His face sunk into the ground, their race upending him.

“Deku!” She ran over to him, his wellbeing taking precedence over maintaining their separation. She kneeled and put a hand on his shoulder, readying herself to carry him if need be.

“I’m alright,” he said as he sat up, shaking the snow from his hair. His face had a small gash, but nothing too concerning. Still, he winced as he stretched. She knew if he did have a more serious ailment, he would ignore it.

“You should go inside and get it looked at, just in case,” she chided as she grabbed onto his hand. He grasped onto it, the calloused appendage slipping into hers. Rough, but still pleasant to touch. “I’ll go in a bit. Thanks, Ochako.” For a brief shining moment, they stood together, their hands intertwined. It was natural. Warm. Right. They forgot their divide, as their care for one another overpowered it. But it vanished as quickly as it came. Izuku tried to hold on, but Ochako forced a break in the physical connection. She retreated into herself. “Izuku, I appreciate what you’re trying to do. But I... I just can’t, right now.” “Then when? I just want to fix this. Please. Don’t keep shutting me out.” “It’s not...it’s not something I want to do.” She shifted on her feet, turning her back towards him. She could not bear to face him right now. “But I’m still hurt. And I’m still figuring stuff out. I’m just not sure about where we go from here.” “Not sure…” he repeated, voice sinking. She took a couple of steps, intent on sprinting away. But her heart rebelled, keeping her in place. She grimaced and clutched at her chest, trying to retain some semblance of control. She could not do this. She could not fall into his arms. She had to be strong.

“Ochako, we should really talk about this more.” There was a harsh edge in the words. A bitterness she could not stand. “I don’t understand. And I can’t understand unless we-”

She cut him off before he reeled her in.

“We will. Eventually. I just...need more time. I think some time is good for both of us right now.”

With that, she ran away, keeping her eyes glued to the landscape. This time, he did not chase after her.

The wind roared, and the snow kept bombarding her. She eagerly plunged into it, focusing on the awful sensation it left atop her skin, relishing in the bitter cold.

________________________________________________________

No matter how she tried, she could not capture sleep.

Ochako tossed and turned in bed, haunted by her encounter with Izuku from that morning. In wakefulness, she drove herself to the point of distraction. But it was harder to escape him between the realms of sleep and waking, his face plaguing her, muddying her mind. With a groan, she pushed herself upright. She stared out into the dark room. Memories of the time they spent together here began to surface in her mind, making the space foreboding. She quickly forced herself out of bed, hurriedly getting herself dressed. If respite was unreachable, she would just train until she could. Natural sleep eluded her; she would work herself until she could force it to take hold. She grabbed her workout bag and left the room, tiptoeing through the dorms, mindful not to stir her classmates. The nighttime halls were tricky to navigate, but she had enough late escapes over the years to maneuver by memory. The chill outside brushed her skin intensely, with snow falling gently over the fields. Ochako acted quickly as the cold sunk its teeth into her again. She raced towards her destination, wanting to find even a modicum of warmth. The scenery had its appeal - with the snow glistening under the lights of the school - but the chill made it difficult to find any joy in the sight. The U.A. gym facility loomed large as she arrived. She fumbled through her pockets to pull out a keycard, a perk of being a third year in the hero course. In these harsh times, the school would not deny them the training space, regardless of the hour.

To Ochako’s surprise, light flooded the facility, indicating she was not as alone as she expected to be at this late hour. She glanced over the rows upon rows of equipment as she entered to find her late-night compatriot.

The head of green hair - underneath a shifting, massive dumbbell - shocked her into stillness.

There Deku was, glistening with sweat as he pumped the bar up and down quickly, assuredly without his quirk. She dared to approach - if he had noticed her, he did not bother indicating as such. His arms moved deftly, the heavy weight doing little to impede his well-muscled limbs.

Evidently, restlessness had taken hold of him, as well.

Ochako opted against disturbing him. She had to work herself to sleep - nothing more. If he kept his distance - allowed her to maintain the icebound spell between them - she could carry on fine. She got herself into a weight machine well away from him and got to work.

Izuku eventually paused his own ministrations, setting his bar back against the rack, breathing deeply. He looked up at her, maintaining a stoic aura. He did nothing to outwardly acknowledge her presence, but she knew he was too observant to miss it. Still, that suited her just fine.

The two continued their workouts without a word. Calming tranquility took hold of the space. Not enough to bridge their divide, but enough for a ceasefire in their cold war.

The space filled with the sounds of their breathing and the metallic slams of whatever weight system they tackled. Their paces stayed out-of-sync, but they both worked toward their respective goals in peace.

But before Ochako became completely cognizant of it, they both pushed themselves more than needed to. They went beyond their original aims of finding rest.

Izuku ran quickly on the treadmill, breathing deeply. He attacked an exercise machine next, adding enough weight to reach what she knew was close to his Quirkless maximum before attacking the device in earnest.

For her part, Ochako added a few extra discs when he took to the bench press, pushing against her own limits. Like Izuku, she refused to use her Quirk to make things easier on herself.

The tension in the room escalated with their intensity. What began as a sleepless night soon became another unspoken contest. In this space, they had always pushed one another, driving each other to go beyond. Tonight, it would be no different.

But silence had replaced relentless encouragement. Their warm love was replaced by an icy unease. Friendliness had left their competition. Even as the allure of sleep began to gnaw at the corners of her mind, she did not heed it. The prospect of leaving before Izuku did - proving herself unable to keep up with him - had become unfathomable.

Their bodies could not keep up the pace forever. With synchronicity, they each took a water break, grabbing a drink from fountains on opposite sides of the facility. Merely a few seconds apart, they both sat down on a weight bench, suddenly face-to-face at some distance.

Ochako pointedly acted aloof, looking away from him. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him doing the same, idly scanning his shoes.

They were a completely hopeless pair.

Ochako could not stop the small chuckle and smirk that came from the thought. It proved infectious, as Izuku let out his own peal of laughter across from her.

They dared to look at one another, finally acknowledging each other. Her hero’s eyes had a fierceness, but also a spark she had come to love. They spoke of challenge and unyielding determination. She did her best to meet it head-on. To stand up to his expectations.

With the slightest incline of her head, she motioned towards her left. The direction of the sparring ring. A silent challenge. An opportunity to test her mettle. To quickly end the contest the night had brought.

He nodded in reply.

The two walked wordlessly in unison towards the ring. They both loved the place, the home of their many bouts. But as Ochako entered and squared up in her usual position against her far superior foe, the energy was different. It mattered in a way it had not before. She knew when push came to shove, he always pushed back harder.

The two of them paused, eyeing one another. Izuku stood powerfully, the fire still roaring in his eyes. In these moments, she found him to be at his most enthralling. When he looked ready to tear through any wall in front of him.

Tension-filled sweat gathered along her forehead. She took a steadying breath as the seconds eked on. The tempting flames that had lured them in burned between them. A part of her saw the ridiculousness of this. But she realized this is exactly what she needed - a chance to fight him. To prove herself a worthy adversary - and a worthy companion.

A test she needed to pass.

“Don’t hold back, Deku!”

He nodded. “Same to you.”

“Of course!”

Deku opted to make the first move, as he often did. He launched himself into head-on assault, leading with an overwhelming burst of speed and strength.

But Uravity was ready, predicting such a tactic. She easily blocked his flurry of punches and sidestepped the few knees he attempted to send her. She nearly grabbed hold of him to enter a grapple. but he dodged out of the way, using his agility to gain a bit of distance.

She did not relent. The moment he disengaged, she got right on top of him again, grabbing onto both of his arms. He struggled as she brought him in close and slammed his body into the ground, quickly gaining the upper hand. Even as he directed a few elbows into her core, she pushed on. Try as he might, she still had better technical hand-to-hand skills.

Uravity twisted his body, pinning him with her weight, a hand to the back of his neck.

She had won. But the hollow victory failed to satisfy her.

Where was the action to match his intense gaze? Where was the tactical genius she had seen overcome much greater odds than this? Where was Deku, the unstoppable force? This had been far too easy - like any run-of-the-mill sparring session.

It was not good enough. She could not be sure she was good enough with this.

“That can’t be all you got.” She released him, standing up and stepping away. “You’re holding back on me.”

Deku scrambled to stand back up. He grimaced, frowning at her, his eyes pleading. They no longer had the same intensity. That would not do. She bore her own gaze into him, challenging him, demanding his fire match her own.

“Ochako,” he began slowly, looking away, unable to match her intensity. “I’m sorry that I hurt you.”

“Not now,” she replied, stomping a foot down onto the mat. “I appreciate the sentiment, but we can talk later. Let’s finish this first.”

Deku huffed, but relented, getting into a ready stance. He balled his fists, his hands starting to shake. The fire returned to his eyes. The version of him she needed had emerged again. Not a friend. Not a lover. A rival.

“You ready?”

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “Yes.”

She made the first strike this time. Defense was not his strongest suit, but he pressed as hard as he could to block her onslaught. He leaned into her efforts to grapple him, challenging her on her terms, desperate to find a way through. They found their hands intertwined, pushing against one another, each struggling to find an advantage.

For a brief moment, they stood face-to-face. Ochako looked into his eyes more closely than she had in weeks. She saw his fury, but there was more than that there. Wetness surrounded his eyes, his emotions pouring out from them.

“I hate this,” he whispered. “I hate fighting you like this.”

She groaned and shoved harder at him, but he remained unmoving.

“It’s not about whether it’s enjoyable,” she said, unable to contain the venom in her words. “It’s about doing what you have to do to save people. That’s how I see this. This is what I must do. That’s what it means to be a hero, isn’t it?”

“But we don’t have to do this!”

Izuku suddenly released the grapple, ducking under her oncoming hands. In the second she tipped off-balance, he tackled her core, driving her onto the ground.

“I don’t want to fight you! I just want to be with you!” He shouted it out as he struggled to find a pin against her. Despite his best efforts, she shoved him off, forcing him to hop back onto his feet.

“What are you-”

“But you won’t let me in, the same you always used to do! I hate it!”

He sprung at her as she stood back up, launching a series of punches toward her midsection. She managed to block most of them, but her reactions were not quick enough, and a couple of them struck true.

She shook as she found herself unable to contain his attack - or his words. “I just need time!”

“I can’t wait forever!” Another punch landed on her shoulder. She flinched as it seared in pain.

With a quick sweep of his feet, she fell backwards. As he brought her down to earth, he caught her arms, using his sudden leverage to twist her around. The two tumbled down together, him on top of her - and her arms caught behind her back.

Deku had won.

But for their racing breaths, the facility was quiet again. His words hung in the air, storming above them.

“I just…” he gulped. “Just tell me already. Tell me how you really feel about me. Don’t leave me on the edge.”

Deku left her there. She kept her face to the mat as he exited the ring. Uravity could not describe the emotion that coursed through as she lay there and pondered his words.

After all the effort she mustered to protect him from the extent of her feelings - he wanted to break through, right now? All the time she spent carefully containing them, locking them up to focus - all for his sake. All to save his life when his ridiculous, awesome, incredible, stupid zeal put him in harm’s way.

She just needed time. Space. A way to figure out how to do this. A way to prove to them both that she could keep up with him.

Yet here he was, demanding she break it all down for him. Let out the torrent, the anguish, the guilt, the envy.

Screw it.

If that is what he wanted, she would give it to him - and bury him under it. He would see her feelings. She would hide nothing - and get the battle she needed.

Without fanfare, she stood up, took a breath, and followed him out of the ring.

Uravity took a moment to regard him as he stood, still watching her. He looked completely worn out, his hair disheveled and his eyes red. More tears threatened to spill out of them. But there something resembling pity hid in that stare - which she would not stand.

Her vision got hazy as she stomped toward him, drawing into the bubbling fury within her. Deku meant everything to her - and that includes her envy, her fear and her insecurities. She could draw from that, just as much as she could draw on her love.

This was what she needed. She had to believe that.

“You want to know how I feel? Would you really understand?”

Uravity did not let him reply as she surged forward, slapping his face. She stretched her fingers out, tapping him with her Quirk and sending him hurtling towards the entranceway. Without missing a beat, she caught up to his floating form, grabbing onto his arm and roughly pulling him outside.

“Ochako! What are you doing?!” He fumbled in her iron grip, twisting and turning but unable to escape.

She pulled them out into the white abyss. The wind howled around her ears, the snow blowing roughly. The cold hit her again, but she hardly felt it.

Uravity threw him roughly towards the ground, releasing her Quirk. He sprung up as soon as she released him from the hold, instinctively putting his hands in front of him, expecting another assault.

The exact reaction she wanted.

“Fight me, Deku. No holding back. No holds barred. With your Quirk. Come at me with everything you got.” She got herself into a ready position, her hands going in front of her, keeping her gaze focused on him. If she wanted to stand any chance, she had to predict exactly where he would be in advance.

“Ochako, what the heck are you doing?!”

“This is what you asked for!” She stomped her foot into the ground. “You want to know how I feel? Well, here it is Deku! I feel like I need to fight you!”

The situation was absurd. Wild. A madness. But the churning in her belly demanded she followed through. She let her impulse take control. She could test her power this way.

He flinched under her verbal onslaught. “That’s...you…”

“I need to prove myself!” She refused to stop, even as his face crumbled. “I need to prove that I’m strong enough to stand by your side! So, let’s do it! Let’s fight for real!”

“Ochako, that’s not true. You don’t need to prove-”

“Do not lie to me Deku!”

The denial died on his tongue. He looked at her, hands shaking. He shivered, whether due to the chill or something else.

“Bakugo. Todoroki. I need you to fight me like you fought them.” She let her hands drop to her sides. She looked across his exposed arms, marred with the scars of past battles.

“Ochako, that’s not really...this is a different situation-”

“I need to know if I can fight you like they can.” She closed her eyes. The memories of all the times he had run off without her played in her mind - all the times she could not hope to chase him. “I see now. This might be the only way. The only way you will really trust me to stand with you.”

She got back into a ready position.

“I don’t need to prove myself? Then treat me like I’m someone worth giving your all to.”

Deku’s eyes widened. His body still shook. She watched another tear leak down his face, trailing down his freckled cheek into the ice below. She was sure she had let out a few of her own. It did not matter.

Her idol closed his eyes. Her rival opened them, filling those green irises with the burning intensity she needed.

Deku nodded and moved his hands in front of him.

“First to give up or be pinned. Hold nothing back. For real this time.”

“I won’t,” Deku replied. “I do respect you, Uravity.”

“Good. Prove it. Come at-”

She had to duck from his oncoming blow. The wind swept around her hair, blowing with an intensity that nearly knocked her off her feet.

She twisted around quickly. Deku had flown 10 feet behind her, his arm outstretched. The superpowered charge carried him quite a distance, so fast that she could barely track it. Still, it thrilled her that she dodged him at his top speed, even if only once.

“You’re going to have to try harder than that!”

Deku turned back towards her, readying himself to burst forward again. His mouth formed a hard line, his eyes imploring her.

“Uravity, I don’t know if this means anything to you right now. But I’ve always felt you were one of the best.”

He leapt out of her sight again. She did not react immediately, predicting he would take his time for his second attack. She could not see him well - his speed made him a blur and the snow made that even worse - but she heard him in the air. She just had to be patient.

“That hardly matters when I am comparing myself against the best.”

She shifted the side as he directed a punch towards her stomach. In the split second of his vulnerability, she grabbed hold of his outstretched arm. She delighted in his little gasp of surprise as she triggered her Quirk. She twisted him overhead, slamming him towards the ground and releasing him with all his weight back.

The green hero crashed hard, gasping at the impact. Before she could go for the pin, he had already started moving, rolling with the blow and returning to his flyby pattern.

It was a start - but not good enough to keep him down.

“Look how strong you are!” He cried out from the darkness, keeping out of her vision. “You’re reading my moves like a pro, even at these speeds. You’re incredible, Uravity! You are worthy!”

“Not yet I’m not!”

A blast of air buffeted her - courtesy of a finger snap from him - far more difficult to track than his physical form. She barely stood her ground, digging her heels into the snow to keep herself from flying away. She had more preparation for the second burst of air, though she had to fall to her knees to keep herself in place.

But it left her vulnerable to his black whip. The tendrils wrapped around her arms, shoving her, making her topple over face-first into the ground. Breathing hard, she forced her body to roll forward, pulling hard and breaking the whips even as her body protested hard against the maneuver. But it stopped the fight from ending, as Deku pounced on the spot she was in a split second ago.

Uravity rolled back onto her feet by the time he was ready to attack again. He stood still for just a moment before squatting down to leap away again.

But this time, she did not allow him to. She pushed herself to her knees and triggered her Quirk, blasting upwards with all the strength she had built over the years. She could not hope to match his speed, but she had just enough quickness to grab onto his foot as he leapt, activating her Quirk again and ruining his trajectory.

His forward momentum carried them both skyward, but Uravity did not stop there, yanking him back down. She could not see his face as she went into a power move - mustering all her strength to whirl him around mid-air, using his momentum against him in a disorienting spin.

“If I am really worthy…” she grit her teeth as she spun, pushing down the bile rising in her throat. “Then why don’t you act like I am?! Why do you always leave me behind?!”

She released him and deactivated her quirk, his weight and momentum hurting him towards the ground. She caught a glimpse of his expression, his eyes wide open in shock. But the spin did not manage to disorient him enough. He cancelled the plunge with his own float powers, quickly countering his descent by flicking his fingers toward the ground, sending out an airblast.

“I’m sorry, Uravity! It just...it happens!” he cried out.

“Then I need to make sure I’m strong enough to keep up!”

She released her Quirk, letting herself fall to the Earth. She oriented herself to rocket towards him, intent on driving him into the dirt with her own two hands if she had to.

Deku twisted himself in the air to meet her. Rather than avoid the collision, he went on the offensive. As they clashed, he drove a fist into her gut. Uravity gasped as the blow knocked the breath out of her, pain surging in her stomach.

But the bulk of her desperate move still landed, and she drove both of them into the Earth. Deku took the brunt of the blow, bouncing with the hard impact. Their bodies tumbled together, rolling into the snow. The substance got trapped underneath her clothing, melting into her bare skin underneath and sending shivers through her. Fresh scrapes and bruises throbbed; she did her best to ignore them.

Uravity disentangled herself from him as quickly as possible, scrambling to stand back up. She could not get to her feet before puking, the blow to her stomach landing hard enough to force it.

She wiped her mouth quickly and surged to her feet. breathing hard to control her queasiness. The world spun, but she got her fists in front of her, ready to deflect his next attack.

Her foe did not strike immediately. He rose to his feet, breathing as deeply as she did. The snow falling overhead had subsided, but the wind still raged. White covered his green hair, while melted traces of ice fell across his skin. Fresh scrapes and forming bruises dotted his skin as well. The illusion of a mighty rival had vanished; he just looked terrible. A strange mixture of horror and satisfaction ran through her, knowing she made him that way.

“Don’t you see yet, Uravity?” His words were strained, interrupted by a heaving breath. “You’re already strong enough to stand by me.”

Uravity shook her head. She would not let his honeyed words deceive her anymore.

“I’m nearly at the end of my rope here, Deku.” She looked down at her right hand, seeing the bloody cuts marring it, the flow slowed by the night’s chill. “You’re the strongest hero in the world. You and I both know who has more endurance here. I have to do a lot better.”

Deku groaned, putting a hand to his face and shaking his head.

“I can barely stand.” He let out an awkward chuckle, filled with bitterness instead of mirth. “It’s funny. I am so far away from being what you think of me. Yet here you are thinking you’re unworthy.”

“You’re not,” she said flatly, taking a step forward. “You’re the most incredible hero I’ve ever met and I’m...I’m just Ochako. The gravity girl, not powerful enough to be there when it really matters.”

“You’re wrong!”

The furious denial made her jump slightly, his voice escalating quickly. She gasped at the passion in his eyes, bearing into her, burning everything else away.

“You’re one of the most spectacular, strong, and powerful heroes I’ve ever met!” he shouted, his hands flying with every word. “You’re the best person I know!” he put his hand over his heart, curling his fingers there. “And I would never have gotten this far if not for you! I would be dead ten times over!”

She brought her hands to her ears. She felt the words burrowing into her, abating the angry pulse of her heart. She loved him so much. But she could not leave this place without finishing this. Without knowing who would win.

She met his stare head-on, hard as he was to look at. “I’m not good enough for that to be true!”

“Yes, you are! You are the one who is far too good for me!”

Uravity blinked, legitimately caught off guard by the preposterousness of the statement.

“What? You’re the most amazing person I know. How could you think that?”

“Because you’ve been ignoring me for weeks! Because you’re you and I’m just me! Because you are the most wonderful person in the-”

”I still want to be with you!” she shouted back. “Now stop complimenting me already and hit me!”

No longer willing to let their absurd, distracting conversation continue, she charged him with all the strength she could still muster.

To her frustration, Deku merely dodged, ducking out of her attacks far too easily. She felt her speed slowing, even as she tried to draw upon whatever adrenaline she had left in her system.

“I don’t want to hit you anymore! I don’t want to fight you!” He cried out as he blocked her punches. He dodged backwards as she attempted to sweep his feet. His agility just made her more frustrated.

“You really don’t get it, do you?” She felt her whole body quivering from a mixture of the biting cold and the fire burning at her inside. “This is what I have to do.”

She let her mind conjure up that haunting vision again. Deku, hanging in the air. A tendril puncturing him, spilling his blood out onto the concrete below. Her, reaching out, not fast enough to save him this time.

With a breath, she demanded her body keep pushing. To go beyond.

“I love you too much to not do this!”

She sank herself to the ground and launched herself with her Quirk again, hurtling toward him in a self-destructive attack. Deku did not leap away in time and she managed to wrap her arms around his hips, sending them both back in the ground again.

Uravity desperately attempted to grab hold of his arms and find the pin, but he shoved back hard, grabbing onto her hands. She stared down at him, his expression a mask of strain as he pushed back against her, trying to get back up.

“And I love you too much to want to hurt you anymore!”

“Little late for that!”

He finally gave her what she wanted. He launched his head forward, butting heads with her. Her forehead stung as she reeled backwards. It allowed his push to work and he flung her off, using enough force to send her tumbling in the dirt a few feet away.

Every bounce off the ice dug into her, the pain stacking up. She tried to do another quick roll to stand back up but found her body thoroughly unwilling to move in that way. When she finally came to a stop, she forced herself to slowly get her feet back under her, her limbs screaming in protest every step of the way. Her legs trembled when she finally stood again - but she managed it.

For his part, Deku also stood up, but his stance looked shaky. They were both out of breath, their arms hanging loosely at their sides. They both stood on their last legs.

“Ochako. Can we-”

“No, Deku. We’re finishing this. I need this. I need to know what will happen.”

He let out a deep sigh.

“I’m sorry. I guess this is the only way.”

Deku brought his shaking hands up in front of him again.

“If this is what you need, I won’t deny you anymore.”

Uravity breathed a sigh of relief. For the first time in their fight, she felt her lips curling upwards.

“Thank you, Deku. I’ll live with whatever happens.” Her sore arms ached as she put them up in front of her. “Good luck.”

“Same to you.”

They sized each other up one last time. Even with him in terrible shape, at that moment, Deku looked every bit the hero she knew him to be.

This was the way it had to be. They would sharpen each other to be even better. It had to be an equal partnership - and Uravity could never be content unless she could force that to be the case again.

With a final, harmonious roar, they charged at one another. It echoed into the night, unmitigated by the wind. Uravity braced herself for the blow to come, risking everything into one final strike.

They collided in the middle. She saw every freckle on his features. She sent her first hurtling toward his face. In her peripheral vision, his fist appeared just before it smacked against her cheek.

The scarred fist met her...and she felt no pain.

The two of them panted in unison. She looked up to see her own fist sinking into the skin of his cheek. His head tilted slightly, but he otherwise stood upright, barely budged from the blow.

Their final strikes had done nothing. They had no energy left to summon any more strength for the blows to make an impact.

Izuku and Ochako collapsed onto the ground side by side, completely spent. They crashed into the dirt face up, laying next to one another. The ground cooled their overheated skin.

The tension between them disappeared with the rest of their energy. Ochako did her utmost to stave off the urge to sleep, knowing how dangerous that could be. They should get out of the cold snow - but she found it impossible to move any of her limbs.

The sun crested the horizon, bathing them in the morning’s soft light. They had competed so long - hours on end - that they had reached the dawn. Any chance at sleep was thoroughly squandered.

They did the only thing they could: they laughed together.

Ochako could not help the sounds emanating from her, as the absurdity of everything crashed into her at once. Her partner fared little better, the manic mirth wracking through him with equal measure. The air filled with it, building up more and more, fueling itself in perpetuity.

“We’re hopeless,” Izuku managed to squeak out.

“They’re gonna kill us,” Ochako said, strangely not feeling any fear at the prospect.

“We finished.”

“At least we can get scolded together.”

They reached out for each other's hands, squeezing gently. Ochako breathed a sigh of relief at the sensation. She had missed the simple gesture. They had no energy left to continue their battle for now. They both needed comfort - there had no reason not to seize it.

“I’m sorry. You’re right. I didn’t understand you.” Izuku’s voice took a serious edge. She heard him getting choked up. “I promise - I do need you, Ochako. To face him - and to get there. I want to stay by your side.”

Oh. Ochako let out a shuddering breath at the firm affirmation. Her eyes misted at the idea. That he would keep her by his side - and that he needed her there.

“I’m sorry too. I didn’t make it easy.” She idly curled her free hand into the snow, enjoying the cool sensation against her aching palm. “I was just so lost. I wasn’t sure if I could handle being with you and working to be with you when it really mattered. But I should have been more open about it.”

Izuku did not respond right away. The silent seconds stretched long. Was her apology not enough?

“Do you...do you think you can handle it now?” He sounded so vulnerable. So afraid of her answer. “Being with me?”

That gnawing guilt ate at her again. She could not be certain of her answer to that question. Her beating heart was hard to control in the best of circumstances. The risks were great.

But as she looked over at him - terribly injured by her hand, willing to go so far for her sake - she knew how she had to answer.

With great difficulty, she stood up, making herself weightless to make that a bit easier. Her muscles ached terribly, but she bore it best she could.

When she stood, she leaned down and reached a hand out toward him. She put on her best, sunniest expression for him, which was easier than she thought it would be.

“I don’t know if I can handle it, to be honest. But I know this is what I want to do. I’ll take that risk for you - wherever that might lead. You’re worth it!”

He practically glowed, making her heart flutter. The power he held over her could be difficult sometimes. But she took some solace knowing she held a similar sway over him.

He grasped onto her hand, letting her lift him up.

They quickly ran into the merciful warmth of the training facility. The insanity of their battle finally caught up with them. They shivered together and moved towards the building’s heated vents. They had both fortunately brought a change of clothes and hurriedly got out of their now soaked garb.

They recovered on their favourite bench, beside the ring where it all began. They each rubbed at their arms and legs to get the feeling back into their numb limbs. The process made them ache, but she took solace in the presence. Being with him, without any walls in their way, went a long way toward heating her core.

“That really was brutal,” Izuku muttered as he rubbed his arms with his hands. “I can’t believe my senpai thought she couldn’t keep up with me.”

“Deku!” she exclaimed, unable to control the flush in her face. She pouted as he laughed at her expense, but she joined him quickly. It felt good being able to joke with him again.

“I do mean it though. You kicked my butt out there. There’s no doubt in my mind about your worth as a hero.”

Ochako smiled at him. but shook her head. “That was a draw at best. Who knows how that would have gone if we were in top form? But I appreciate the compliment from the future number one.”

He blushed at the pronouncement, which she delighted in. “Thanks. But I don’t want you to keep thinking that way about your own ability. How am I going to convince you?” He put his hand to his chin, thinking over the question.

“By fighting me. Again.”

“What?!” He sprang up in response as if expecting another attack.

“I’m not saying right away.” She gave him a challenging smirk. She held her hand out for him, asking him for an agreement. “But in a little while. I need to get a lot stronger first. Then we’re going to have a real fight. No holds barred and in nicer weather. Deal?”

Izuku stroked his chin again, his eyes concentrating for a moment. “I still want to help you train again. We can work together. Like we used to do.”

“I suppose I can agree to that,” she said, trying to sound businesslike, but unable to contain the excitement at the proposition.

With a wide grin, Izuku grabbed onto her hand, shaking it. “Deal.”

The two walked out of the facility together, hand-in-hand, tied together by their new pact and reforged bond. For the first time in her life, Ochako had confidence she would be able to stay at his side, through whatever trials emerged.

Together, they walked outside into the dawn, ready to face the darkness to come.

______________________________________________

AN: Written for the IzuOcha Discord Winter Writing Contest. Prompt: Bitter Cold. This also definitely has nothing to do with my mixed feelings about Ochako’s place in the manga recently. Thank you to the organizers for putting this on and inspiring me to write something new after a lengthy hiatus. I hope you enjoyed! Please like and reblog if you did! =)

#izuocha #my hero academia #my hero academia spoilers #manga spoilers #fanfiction #oneshot #Izuku Midoriya #ochako uraraka #angst #shipping #I just like exploring them through combat okay #romance #boko no hero academia

44 notes · View notes